Rose of the Underground
by Erecles
Summary: Ruby is sent on a single mission to deal with a Grimm infestation detected on Mt. Ebott. What Ruby soon realizes that the fairy tales of the monsters were true, and will have to make her way through the underground to escape. Will she become the true pacifist? Or will her soft conscious fail her and fall to genocide? Undertale spoilers! Rated T for slight strong language.
1. Chapter 1: Fallen Down

Chapter 1: Fallen

Something was clearly off. Ruby was sent on a lone mission to Mt. Ebott for taking care of a Grimm infestation, but she has encountered little to no Grimm on her way here. In fact, she hasn't even encountered a single sign of Grimm activity anywhere near the mountain. She went up to the near peak of the mountain to see a giant cave with a huge hole in the middle of the cave. She tried to get a closer look at the hole, but forgot to check her footing and got her foot caught on a vine, tripping into the hole. Her spine would have shattered if it wasn't for the bed of flowers at the bottom. She looked up to see that the hole was deeper than she thought. She tried to run back up, but to no avail. Even with her semblance, she couldn't run up the wall to get out.

"Crap, I think I'm stuck down here." Ruby said to herself. She turned to see a tunnel. "Well, I can't get out the way I came, so I might as well see if there's an easier way of getting out." She then went down the tunnel and through a doorway to see a lone yellow flower. What put Ruby off was that the flower had a face.

"Howdy!" The flower greeted, making Ruby jump. "Oops, sorry. Didn't mean to scare you. I'm Flowey! Flowey the flower."

Ruby finally calmed down enough to comprehend the situation. "Oh, hi Flowey. My name's Ruby Rose." Ruby greeted, making Flowey chuckle. "What?"

"Oh, nothing. Just your name. I feel like we'll get along quite well." Flowey joked. "Now, I haven't seen your face around here. You must be new here. Poor you, you must be so confused. Someone ought to teach you how things work around here. Guess little old me will have to do!"

"Sure! Man, it's good to know that this place isn't full of heartless monsters." Ruby cheered.

Oh, if only you knew. Flowey thought. "Now, let's begin." Flowey said cheerfully. "Now, don't freak out or anything. This might sting slightly. I really don't know, I've never tried it myself."

"What do you me-" Ruby asked, but was cut off by a comic heart flashing on her chest. "WOAH! That's new." Ruby exclaimed.

"Now, that is your heart, the very culmination of your being. But from what some stories I've heard, humans call that 'aura'. Heh, soul, aura. What's the difference?" Flowey chuckled. "Anyway, you can strengthen your soul by gaining LV. What's LV stand for? Why, LOVE, of course."

"Make sense." Ruby stated. "So how do I gain LV?"

"Simple!" Flowey exclaimed, releasing some pellets. "These here are little white... friendliness pellets. Just grab them and you'll be stronger than before. I guarantee. Now, grab them! Catch as many as you can!"

Ruby went to grab one, but when she did, she felt extreme pain. "AUGH! Hey, that really hurt!" Ruby cried.

"Oh, don't worry, that's just part of the process! But you only got one. You need at least five to grow." Flowey said, sending a few more pellets at Ruby. Ruby dodged the pellets this time, making Flowey's expression change.

"You know what's going on here, don't you?" Flowey said in a raspy voice. "You just wanted to see me suffer."

"What the Dust are you-" Ruby started to ask, but was but off by pellets surrounding her.

Die. Flowey snapped in a dark voice, then laughing a maniacal laugh as the pellets closed in on Ruby. Ruby looked to try and find a way out of this, but soon she realized she had no where to go. She closed her eyes and accepted the face that she would die. She waited... waited... but nothing happened. She opened her eyes to see Flowey with a confused face. But he wasn't there for long since a ball of fire sent him flying out of sight. Another being came into view.

She was about twice the size of Ruby with white fur covering her whole body, along with goat-like ears and horns. She also wore a purple garment with a symbol on the chest, three triangles with a winged creature above them.

"What a miserable creature, torturing such a poor, innocent youth." The goat lady said. "Hello, child. My name is Toriel. And what might your name be?"

"Hi, Toriel. My name's Ruby Rose. Thanks for saving my life." Ruby greeted/thanked.

"You are most welcome, Ruby. I assume you will not put much trust in me after that encounter with that flower." Toriel said.

Ruby sighed. "It's kind of hard to trust people when they say they're your friend and immediately try to kill you again."

"Understandable. Still, I would like to show you that not all monsters down here are bad, me being one of them. Now, come child. This is no place for you to be at. I will take you to my home." Toriel said. "But first, I must teach you how the underground works. Please, follow me."

Ruby hesitated. What if this was another trap? What if Toriel was pulling her in to gain her trust and then kill her? Then again, Toriel seemed too nice to do anything of the sort. She followed Toriel to a stairway leading to another doorway. Around the room were scattered rose petals, along with a strange yellow star in the middle of one patch. Ruby went up to it and the strangest thing happened. She touched the star and immediately felt every wound she had vanish. It even seemed like all the scars she had gotten from all her fights had gone too. She checked her left elbow where she remembered getting a scar from a Beowolf, and it was no longer there.

"Ruby? You alright?" Toriel called out. Ruby snapped out of her gaze and replied "Yeah, I'm fine." Ruby then followed Toriel to the next room.

"The underground is full of puzzles. Here, let me solve this one for you." Toriel said, stepping on four panels in a simple order. "Once you complete a puzzle, it should shut down automatically, making it so you won't have to solve it again."

"Well, that's handy." Ruby said, smiling. Toriel couldn't help but smile too. The two then went through the newly opened doorway. In that room was four switches on the far wall.

"In this room is another puzzle. I wonder if you can solve it." Toriel said. Ruby looked to see three of the switches had arrows pointing to them. Ruby guessed that those were the ones she should pull. So she did, opening a new passage.

"Well done, child." Toriel congratulated. They walked into the next room, there being a fighting dummy. "Now, the monsters here will attack you at first, but if you say or do the right thing, they can be befriended. Practice by talking to the dummy." Toriel explained.

Ruby then walked up to the dummy and started chatting with it awkwardly. After a good talk, she walked away. "Very good! Do that, and you'll fit in down here in no time!" Toriel said cheerfully. They then proceeded to another hallway, this one having a weirdly patterned path. In the corridor, as Toriel went on, Ruby encountered a little frog. Her chest flashed her heart again, signaling she was fighting the frog. She remembered what Toriel told her, and tried bringing up a conversation with the frog. Before it could attack, Toriel came in and gave the frog a nasty look, making it back away.

"Sorry about that. Those Froggits tend to literally jump at anyone that comes through here." Toriel said. "But it's good to see you are trying to talk to the enemy. You seem to be talking my advice."

"Well, now that I know I don't have to fight, it's made it a lot easier for me." Ruby said.

"From your appearance, I assume you are a warrior of some kind?" Toriel asked.

"Well, yes and no. I am a huntress in training, learning how to protect people from harm." Ruby replied.

"Ah, I see. You protect those that cannot themselves. A noble fighter. And I assume you want to choose fighting as a last resort?"

"Well, if you could communicate to Grimm, then we wouldn't need hunters and huntresses." Ruby replied, making Toriel have a strange, confused look.

"What are... Grimm?" Toriel asked.

"Oh, you must not have them down here. I'll tell you later. It's a long story."

"Very well. The next puzzle is right up here, but..." Toriel hesitated. "Here, take my hand." Toriel extended her hand for Ruby, which she took. Toriel then guided Ruby though the spikes. Ruby made sure to follow Toriel's footsteps. "Puzzles seem to be a little too dangerous right now."

They then proceeded to another corridor, this one longer than the others. "Child, I have something I will require of you. This is kind of hard to ask... I need you to walk down this corridor alone. I'm sorry." Toriel then ran down the corridor, leaving Ruby alone. Ruby then ran after Toriel.

"Toriel, wait! Toriel!" Ruby shouted, running down the corridor until she came up to a column.

"I'm sorry to frighten you child. I just wanted to test your independence." Toriel said, coming out from behind the column. "Now, I must go to do some business. Here, I'll give you this." Toriel then handed Ruby an old phone.

"Oh, it's alright Toriel, I have my own." Ruby said, pulling out her scroll.

"Ah, very well. I shall instead then give you my phone number. You'll be able to contact me whenever you need." Toriel said, inputting her phone number into Ruby's scroll. "There are a few puzzles past here that I have yet to explain, so I suggest you wait here. In the meantime, maybe practice your sparing techniques on the local monsters." Toriel suggested.

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea." Ruby said, putting her scroll away. After a few minutes, Ruby got bored and decided to go, despite Toriel's instructions. She found another pile of rose petals with another star, giving her the same feeling as the other one. She then went up, finding a pedestal with a bowl of candy and a sign that said 'take one'. She decided it wouldn't be too rude to take one since it wasn't for someone in particular. She then proceeded to the only other direction available. As Toriel said, there were a ton of puzzles around the place. Some having weak floors that'll break when you step on them, others being switch puzzles, and there was one that was both. There are also puzzles that require rocks to be pushed onto a pressure plate. One of the rocks were somehow sentient and made Ruby work to get the spikes to stay down. After that trap, there was a bush of roses with a ghost laying on it. It pretended that it was asleep until it knew Ruby wasn't fooled, then engaging Ruby in a fight.

The ghost was like a comical ghost, white and looked like someone had a bed sheet over their head. Except this ghost seemed to be extremely sad over... something. Ruby tried cheering up the ghost, soon getting him to be a little more open, as well as showing Ruby his trick, making tears turn into a top hat, which he called 'dapperblook'. After that, Napstablook said "I usually go to the ruins to be alone since there's not many people here, but today I met someone nice. Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to go on like that. I'll get out of your way." Then disappeared.

After a few more puzzles, and a few encounters, as well as finding a toy knife, which Ruby took since she had lost Crescent Rose in the fall(and by that, I mean it's functions were damaged, making it unusable, not destroyed.). She soon found a withered tree surrounded by rose petals, as well as a familiar voice.

"Oh boy, that took longer than expected. I'd better check up on her to make sure she's alright." Toriel said, dialing a number in her phone until seeing Ruby next to the tree. "Oh, Ruby, I'm sorry for leaving you for so long. I thought the surprise I was making you would take less time." Toriel apologized.

"It's alright, Toriel. I learned a few things about sparing monsters and made a few friends." Ruby cheered.

"Well, it's good to hear that you accomplished something during your time alone. Now, come along. My house is just up here." Toriel said, walking off to a house on the other side of the room. Ruby went inside the house to see it was a classic home, wooden floor boards, a few shelves with flower pots and picture frames, and other regular house things.

"This is your new home, Ruby. Please, take a look around to get accustomed to it." Toriel said, happier than usual. Ruby then went to the right, seeing a corridor with three doors, the one in the middle being closed off. Ruby went into the first room to see two beds and a lot of child's stuff, like stuffed animals, kids shoes, etc. Ruby yawned and remembered how long it's been since she's had some sleep that wasn't on a flower bed. At that point, she didn't care if it wasn't her bed, she flopped down on the bed, rolled up in the blankets, and falling asleep immediately.

When she woke up, she smelled something delicious. She opened her eyes to see a slice of butterscotch cinnamon pie next to her bed. She was tempted to eat it, but decided that it might be useful later, so she put the pie into a little bag she had in case she found edible food on her mission and put the pie slice in it, clipping it to her belt. She walked out and realized how messy her hair was.

"Hey Toriel, do you have a mirror somewhere?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, there's one at the end of the hallway." Toriel responded.

"Thanks." Ruby thanked, walking to the end of the hall, looking at the mirror to see her hair was a rat's nest. She licked her hands and patted down her hair, getting it arranged after a few moments. She walked to the left of the entrance to see Toriel sitting on a rocking chair, reading a book with some reading glasses. Ruby assumed this was the living room/dining room.

"Good morning Ruby. Did you sleep well?" Toriel asked.

"Yeah, it was *yawn* a nice sleep. Still a little tired, though." Ruby said.

Toriel chuckled. "Well, did you get my greeting present?"

"Yeah, and it smells pretty good."

"Did you like it?"

"Oh, I haven't tried it yet. I figured I might as well save it. I actually do remember a fairy tale that my dad used to read to me. It was about this war with monsters and humans, and how with the power of dust, the royal families were able to seal the monsters under Vale. Also, I heard that monster food has amazing healing capabilities, so I figured something this good would get me back up in a tight situation." Ruby explained.

"Well, you are really well informed. You know, I have always wanted to be a teacher, as surprising as it might sound. Then again, it might not be that surprising to you. Still, I might be able to teach you some new things about the underground and it's history."

"Well, I didn't take you for a teacher." Ruby said.

"Well, the more you know about people. I hope you will enjoy your time here." Toriel said.

That's when Ruby remembered. She needed to leave, to get back to the others. God knows what they're going through without her. She had to tell Toriel. Toriel seemed to read Ruby expression. "Oh, is there something you would like to ask?"

Ruby took a deep breath and sighed. "Toriel, I'm sorry, but I need to get back home."

"Sorry? This is your home. Um, would you like to know about the book I'm reading? It's about snail facts. Would you like to hear one?"

"Toriel, I'm sorry, but I need to get back to Vale! I have a team, I'm the leader!" Ruby took another deep breath. "Toriel, I need to know. We're there other humans that have come down here?"

A/N

Woo! First chapter of Rose of the Underground! It's been a long time leading up, but it's finally here! First off, disclaimer: I do NOT own Undertale nor do I own RWBY! RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth and Undertale is made by Toby Fox. Also, there WILL be Undertale spoilers, so if you have not played Undertale yet, what the hell are you doing here? Go play the damn game! It's awesome! If you have played the game, keep reading! Anyway, I will not be making pairings since I personally do not like pairings. Just saying, my own opinion, do not be butt hurt. Last thing I want to say, I'm sorry if I go OOC with any of these characters. I'm bound to make a few mistakes, happens with everything. Anyway, if you like this series so far, please follow and fav. I am Erecles, signing off.


	2. Chapter 2: Heartache

A/N

Hey guys, looks like you guys are really enjoying this story! Already 6 follows and favs in the first day! Thank you all for supporting this fanfic! I also love writing these stories! I will try to make constant updates, so be sure to check up on this story often! First thing I want to address, this chapter will be a short one since I want to introduce the skeleton bros next chapter, and I probably will make Toriel's fight short. Sorry for those who wanted more of Toriel, but the show must go on. Now, let's get on with chapter 2!

Chapter 2: Heartache

"Child, this isn't someone you need to know. All you need to know is that you'll be safe here." Toriel insisted, but Ruby wasn't satisfied.

"No, Toriel, I need to know! How many other humans have fallen down here?" Ruby insisted.

Toriel sighed. "Six. Six other humans have been down here, and died. I..." Toriel hesitated. "I need to do something." Toriel then put down her book, took off her reading glasses, and went off to the basement. Ruby wasn't going to let her scare her. She went after Toriel. She went on until she saw Toriel stopped in the middle of the hallway.

"Every human that has fallen down here has met the same fate. They come, they leave, they die. You fool, if you continue, they, Asgore, will kill you. Don't you understand? I'm doing this to protect you. Go back upstairs." Toriel commanded. Ruby continued after her. "At the end of this hallway is the exit to the ruins. I'm going to destroy it. This is your last warning Ruby. Go back upstairs."

Toriel and Ruby both advanced to the exit. "You really want to go so bad? Hmph. You're just like the others. Very well, if you wish to leave, then fight. Prove to me you are strong enough to survive!" Toriel demanded, the room grew dark, and the only thing Ruby could see was Toriel and her heart flashing on her chest. She knew she had engaged Toriel in battle. But how she could end it without killing her, she didn't know.

Then, she remembered what a Froggit had told her, sometimes she'll have to spare someone when they aren't willing to spare. She spared Toriel, getting a reaction. "What are you doing? Attack or run away!" Toriel said. Ruby was determined to spare her though. "What are you proving this way?" Toriel asked. Ruby kept sparing her, until... "I know we don't have much, but... We can be a family here..." Toriel tried to negotiate. "...no. I know you would be unhappy here. You would keep trying to leave. So all my feelings, all my expectations. For you, my child, I will put them aside." Toriel said, the battle ending.

"Through this door you will leave the ruins. Just promise me one thing. Promise to not come back." Toriel said, embracing Ruby in a hug, also shedding a tear. Ruby did the same, except her face was covered in tears. Ruby couldn't help it. Her mother was dead, and Toriel was the closest thing to a mother she had, and she was about to lose her after one day. No one could blame her for crying. Soon, they had to break the hug, and Toriel walked back to the house. Ruby then went through the door, but not before looking back at where Toriel went.

"Thank you, Toriel." Ruby said, walking through the door and going down a corridor. At the end, she was met with the first thing she met down here.

"How interesting. Someone who has killed so many heartless beings cries to a monster." Flowey taunted. Ruby was using every ounce of her willpower to not chop the flower in millions of evil pieces. "But you see, this world is meant for something greater. Do not get in my way. I am the prince of this world, but do not worry, my little rose. My plan is not Regicide. It is far more interesting. So I will leave you, for now, little rose of the underground." Flowey said, laughing the same demonic laugh before disappearing into the ground. Ruby soon cooled off. She then proceeded through the door that was the exit of the ruins.

A/N

Hey, sorry for the short chapter. This was more of a filler chapter really. Now, I want to make up for it next chapter and make it a long chapter for all you guys. I hope you guys will stick around for this story. I'm sure you know this, but I will have Ruby doing the true pacifist route, because genocide doesn't seem like something Ruby would do. It just seems to be too OOC. That means that good old AD fight, or the OF fight? Maybe? Nah, AD. True pacifist FTW! Anyway, I will post the finale for HTTYG soon, for those wondering. With that, I am Erecles, signing off.


	3. Chapter 3: Bone Rattling Experiences

A/N

Hey guys, new chapter! I saw you guys loved the last one, and that is great! Now, the chapter you all have been waiting for! The skeleton brothers are coming in, so let's see how badly I'll butcher their character background! Let's hope it's as minimal as possible, because I really love these characters. I mean, what's better than a lazy pun maker and a lonely spaghetti chief? Maybe spaghetti and puns. Now I want spaghetti. Anyway, enjoy! I recommend reading this with some spaghetti and Sans's theme(not Megalovania) playing.

Chapter 3: Bone rattling experiences

As Ruby left the ruins, she felt a cold breeze hit her, which was weird. Even weirder, the area was completely covered in snow. She wasn't the smartest person in the world, but she found it weird that snow was underground. Wouldn't it have melted from both heat accumulation and the ground heat? Then again, there was a forest where fall never ends. She shrugged and went down the snowy path in front of her. She heard a snap behind her and turned to see a twig snapped in two. She started to pick up the pace, but soon looked back for a second to see a shaded figure, but disappeared as soon as a tree came into view. She was practically running at the speed of sound until she reached a bridge. She lost control of her whole body, unable to move.

She struggled to move, but soon heard footsteps coming up behind her. Soon, the footsteps died right behind her. She heard a raspy voice.

"Human. Don't you know how to greet a new pal? Turn around and shake my hand." Ruby then was given back her body control, and turned to be face to face with the shaded figure from before. He then extended his hand for a hand shake. Ruby decided now was not the time to be rude, and took his hand. Then, the sound of a whoopee cushion came from the hand of... the skeleton?

He was a short skeleton, roughly about three quarters the size of Ruby with a blue unzipped hoodie with one of his hands tucked into the pocket, along with a white T-shirt. Along with that, he wore long black shorts with a white stripe on each leg side, along with white slippers. Ruby assumed he didn't do much for physical exercise.

"Hehe, old whoopee cushion in the hand trick. Never gets old. Anyway, you're a human, right? That's hilarious." The skeleton said. "Er, no offense."

"Heh, none taken." Ruby replied.

"Well, at least humans have some sense of humor. Anyway, I'm Sans. Sans the skeleton." Sans introduced.

"Nice to meet ya Sans. I'm Ruby Rose." Ruby introduced.

"Nice to meet you too, Ruby. I'm supposed to be on watch duty for humans, but... I find it kinda boring. Now, my bro, Papyrus, he's a human hunting fanatic. Actually, I think that's him right up there. Quick, go past the bridge. Don't worry, my bro made the bars too wide to stop anyone." Sans said, the two going to a clearing with a kiosk of sorts and a lamp somewhat shaped like Ruby.

"Quick, behind that conveniently shaped lamp." Sans said, Ruby not questioning. Ruby went behind the lamp and made sure nothing was poking out. Soon, she saw another skeleton show up. This one was about twice the size of Papyrus. He wore a red cape with some sort of gear that looked like a low budget Halloween costume for a knight. He also had red gloves and boots.

"Sans! It's been weeks, and you still haven't reset your puzzles!" The skeleton boomed.

"Oh, hey Papyrus, I was just staring at this lamp. Wanna join?" Sans asked, Ruby's heart nearly stopping. She was practically praying that Sans wasn't tricking her.

"No! What if a human were to come by? I need to be ready! Then, I, the great Papyrus, will earn all the things I truly deserve! Respect, recognition, I will finally be able to join the Royal guard! People will ask to be my... friend?" Papyrus said in a cheery tone, the last statement making Ruby start to feel sorry for him.

"Man, you sure are working yourself... Down to the bone." Sans joked, making Ruby groan inside.

'Man, Yang wishes she could be this bad.' Ruby thought.

"Sans, not funny." Papyrus said.

"Come on, you're smiling." Sans pushed.

"I AM AND I HATE IT!" Papyrus yelled, then sighed. "Why does someone as great as me have to do so much just to earn some recognition?"

"Hm, maybe staring at this lamp will help you clear your mind." Sans suggested.

"Sans!" Papyrus yelled.

"What?" Sans asked sarcastically.

"*sigh* Whatever. I need to get back to modifying the puzzles." Papyrus said, laughing as he went off.

"It's good to come out now." Sans said. Ruby then stepped out from behind the lamp.

"I take it you're one for puns." Ruby said.

"Yep. If making puns was a job, I'd be making a ton of money." Sans said.

"Let me guess what you're going to say next." Ruby groaned.

"Yep. A skeleton." Sans joked.

"Jeez, and I thought Yang was bad at making puns." Ruby said.

"Aw, come on. You're smiling." Sans said, poking Ruby.

"Alright, fine, it was kinda good." Ruby admitted, chuckling.

"Also, who's Yang? Someone you know?" Sans asked.

"Oh, Yang is my older sister, and also one of my teammates. She has a thing for making terrible jokes and nicknames. I think you two would get along." Ruby said.

"Sounds like a nice enough person. Hey, can I ask for a favor?" Sans asked.

"Sure, what is it?" Ruby replied.

"Well, my bro's been kinda down lately. I think him seeing a human might just make his day." Sans said.

"I see. So you want me to play along and let Papyrus see me, and try to capture me. Sounds good aside from the capturing part." Ruby said.

"Don't worry, my bro's not that scary, even when he tries to be. So if you could play along that would be great." Sans said.

"I'll think about it." Ruby said.

"Thanks, kid." Sans thanked, then walked off. Ruby then went where Papyrus went, and also encountering an Ice Cap. Ruby was admiring the hat until she thought of a way to spare him. She managed to look away from the hat.

"Uh, Hello? My hat's up here!" Ice Cap said, sending a few ice spikes at Ruby, who easily dodged them. She continued to look away. Ice Cap shrugged. "Better a HATTER than a hater." Ice Cap joked. After another few ice spikes, Ruby spared the Ice Cap. She continued to see another yellow star and a box. She touched the star and was filled with DETERMINATION. She then checked the box to see a glove inside. She looked at Crescent Rose, which was still busted from the fall, and back at the box. Crescent Rose did kind of weigh her down, sad to say, and it was useless in it's current state, so she put Crescent Rose into the box, hugging it one last time since she wasn't sure when she'd see it again, or if she would. She then took the glove and put it on since it was a little cold. She also put the toy knife in with Crescent Rose since she didn't need it since she wasn't going to kill anyone. She went north to see a stick placed in the ground and the other end in the river. She brought it up to see a note on the end.

'Call me, here's my number.' The note said. Ruby decided not to call.

Ruby then went down the other path to see the skeletons talking.

"So, as I was saying about Undyne-" Papyrus was saying, but stopped when he turned to see Ruby. Sans looked over to see Ruby too. They then began looking back and forth from Ruby to the other. Soon, they were literally spinning. They then stopped and turned their backs to Ruby. "Oh my gosh, Sans! Is that a human?" Papyrus asked. The two looked back and their gaze was directed to a rock instead of Ruby.

"Actually, I think that's a rock." Sans said.

"Oh."

"What's that in front of the rock?"

Papyrus looked back to see Ruby. "OH MY GOSH! Is... Is that a human?"

"Yep."

"OH MY GOSH! Undyne will! Everyone will! I'll be so! Popular, popular, popular!" Papyrus cheered, then clearing his throat. "Human, you shall not pass! I, the great Papyrus, will stop you! Ahead is a cluster of puzzles that my brother and I have made! Proceed if you dare! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus laughed, running off in the other direction.

"Well, that went well." Sans said.

"Yeah, your brother seems pretty nice." Ruby said.

"Yeah, he's pretty nice when you get to know him. By the way, thanks, kiddo. My bro's looking pretty happy. So, if you could play along, that would be great. And who knows. Papyrus might even help you out a bit." Sans said.

"Huh, sounds pretty promising. I'll bite. I'll play along." Ruby said.

"Thanks, kid."

"Not a problem, Sans." With that, Ruby went off, finding another kiosk like place. There was a sign that said 'absolutely no moving.' Ruby wondered about this until she walked in front of the kiosk, where a dog came up. She fortunately had stopped moving.

"What was that? Did something move? If something did move, like a human, I'll make sure they won't move again." The dog said, narrowing his eyes. Ruby's heart flashed on her chest, her starting the battle. She waited for Doggo to lower his guard, and quickly pet him. Doggo began barking rapidly, allowing Ruby to spare him.

"Wha- wha- something just pet me! I was pet by something I can't see! I... I need some dog treats for this." Doggo said, slipping back behind his station. Ruby walked on to see some charred dog treats.

She walked on to see the skeletons on the other side of a clearing.

"Hoho! The human arrives! In preparation of you, me and my brother have created some puzzles. I trust you'll find this one... quite shocking. For you see, this is the invisible electricity maze! When you touch the walls of this maze, this orb will release a hearty zap! Sound like fun? Because the amount of fun you will have is exactly rather small, I think." Papyrus trailed off. "Okay! You can go now!"

Ruby took one step and Papyrus was electrocuted. "Sans! What did you do?" Papyrus yelled.

"I think the human has to hold the orb." Sans suggested.

"Oh, right." Papyrus said, going through the maze and going to Ruby. "Here, hold this." Papyrus said, throwing the orb in the air, rushing back. The orb then landed on Ruby's head, somehow not hurting her or threatening to fall of. Fortunately, the snow had accumulated enough on the ground for the path to be visible, due to Papyrus's footsteps, so Ruby followed the footsteps. "Wowie! You solved that puzzle a little too easy. But no matter! There is an Arsenal of puzzles still to be solved." Papyrus laughed, running off.

"Hey kid, good job so far. Hey, when you inevitably fight my bro, be wary of blue attacks. When you see a blue attack, you stand still. It's like a stop sign. When you see one, you stop. So just imagine a blue stop sign." Sans explained.

"Alright, thanks Sans." Ruby said, fist bumping Sans. She then walked on to see someone at a food stand. She went up to the stand.

"Ah! A customer! Care for a nice cream? It's cold in taste, but it warms your heart! Now selling for only 15g." Nice Cream Guy said. Ruby checked her scroll for funds to see her funds from the surface had stayed with her, which she was thankful for. She spent 60g for a few nice creams. "Thank you, come back again!" Nice Cream Guy said. Ruby waved to him as she walked off. She checked her aura to see it was full, so she didn't have to worry about using her food.

To the south was a little snowball and a golf hole on the opposite side. She decided to kick the snowball to the golf hole. A little flag came up, giving her a little bit of g. She then went on, seeing the two skeletons again.

"Human, prepare yourself for-" Papyrus cut himself off when he saw nothing between them. "Sans! Where's the puzzle?"

"It's right there." Sans said, pointing to a piece of paper on the ground. "Trust me, she's never going to get past this one."

"Alright." Papyrus said, not entirely sure of what he had. Ruby looked at the paper to see a crossword puzzle. Ruby chuckled a little, knowing Sans would do something like this. She looked up and walked towards them.

"Sans, that did nothing!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Whoops. I thought that crossword would have stumped them." Sans said.

"Crossword?! I cannot believe you just said that! Junior Jumble is easily the hardest!"

"Junior Jumble? That puzzle for kids? Come on, bro, that stuff's easy."

"Ugh! Human, solve this dispute! Which do you think is harder?" Papyrus said to Ruby.

"Crossword." Ruby said.

"I can't believe you two. Crosswords are so easy! I always just fill the boxes with zs. Because all I can do is snore!" Papyrus joked, laughing and running off. Ruby and Sans fist bumped again. She then continued on , being stopped by a dog in armor, along with a sword and a shield. Ruby didn't know if she should be intimidated, but she found herself petting the dog. She realized that Lesser Dog's head was actually rising. Each time she pet him, his head rose more and more, eventually getting out of sight. She kept petting, eventually the head coming back down. She was laughing and awing so much, the dog getting the best of her. Lesser Dog somewhat reminded Ruby of Zwei back at home. Soon, she had had enough, and didn't know how much it hurt the dog, if I did hurt at all, so she spared Lesser Dog.

The next area had another yellow star, and a table with a plate of spaghetti and a microwave with all setting saying 'spaghetti'. She touched the star, getting filled with DETERMINATION. She went on to see a spike row blocking her way, along with a peculiar pile of snow. She brushed the snow away to find a map of sorts, one part with an x in between three trees. She assumed that there was a switch to deactivate the spikes. Sure enough, there was a switch in there, lowering the spikes. When she proceeded, however, two dogs came up and were armed with halberds.

"Do you smell that?" The male dog asked.

(Smells like... a human.) the female dog said.

"If you're a smell..."

(...identify yoursmellf!)

The two dogs then went around Ruby, smelling and sniffing. Soon, they returned to their original spot.

"There's that smell again." The male dog said.

(The smell seems to be coming from right here.) the female dog said.

"It makes me want to eliminate."

(Eliminate YOU!)

Ruby's chest flashed her heart, engaging in battle. She realized that they rely on smell, so she rolled around in the snow and dirt, catching their scent. They then attacked, chopping around Ruby, who was able to dodge under their swings. She then allowed them to re-sniff, hoping it worked. Fortunately, it did. They mistook Ruby for a little puppy. Then, Ruby tried her luck and pet the male dog.

"Wow! A dog that pets other dogs!" The male dog exclaimed. Ruby then pet the female dog.

(A dog-petting puppy! This is revolutionary!) the female dog exclaimed. Ruby then spared the dog couple.

"A dog that pets dogs!"

(This has changed our view on the world!)

"Thank you, weird little puppy."

Ruby smiled at how many dogs there were around here. Also, it kind of made her homesick. Each dog she saw, she thought of Zwei. She continued on, seeing two blue xs on the ground. She stepped on one, and it changed into an o. She did the same to the other x, and pressed a button to see if it did anything. Sure enough, the spike row went down, making way for Ruby. Papyrus was waiting on the other side.

"Human, how did you get past my devious trap? Also, did you leave any for me?" Papyrus asked. Ruby was confused for a moment, but then realized he was talking about the spaghetti.

"Oh, I left it." Ruby said.

"You left it? Just so you could share some with me?"

"Yep. I would love to have some food with you sometime!"

"Well, I will do just that! After I capture you, maybe we'll have some spaghetti sometime!"

"Uh, sure!"

With that, the two walked on to the next puzzle. "Uh, this next one... well, you were taking a little while, so I tried to arrange the snow to look like my face! But soon the snow froze over, so now the solution is different. But fear not, human, for I will help you through this time of need! While I try to fix it, have a go at it."

"Okay!" Ruby said, looking at the puzzle. It did somewhat look like Papyrus's face. So she tried a few ways, each one failing. Soon, she found a certain way, and disabled the trap.

"Wowie! You completed the puzzle without my help! You must have been an expert back at your home!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"More or less." Ruby admitted.

"Either way, that takes a little work off my back. So I shall go on ahead to the next puzzle!" Papyrus said, running off.

"Hey kid, you're doing good. I can't remember the last time my bro's been this happy." Sans said.

"Well, I'm glad I can help." Ruby said.

"Yup. Just remember, when you fight my bro, be aware of blue attacks."

"I'll be sure to remember." Ruby said, fist bumping Sans again.

The next puzzle was like the last, except there was ice between each x. Ruby took a look and decided that using her semblance wasn't the best idea. She was never fond of ice since she could never get good traction. She examined the puzzle a little more before deciding that the top left x was her best choice to start. She noticed that the switches go in a spiral pattern, so she did that, finally hitting the button in the middle. A new walkway appeared on the right side, and Ruby went down there, coming out with a pile of snow on her head. She continued on to see a field of snow poffs. None of them had anything except for one with 30g. On the last one, a dog popped out. It seemed like a normal white dog until it rose from the snow poff, revealing it had giant armor, it's weapons being a spear and a gauntlet, both having dog faces. When fighting, Ruby could have sworn she heard dogs barking at a beat.

She called for Greater Dog, and he came bounding toward her, slobber flicking on her face. Greater Dog attacked, swinging his spear, turning blue to white and blue again. Ruby was able to get through the blue attack, and threw a snowball for Greater Dog to fetch. The snowball hit the ground and splattered. Greater Dog then gathered all the snow in the area and brought it to Ruby. Greater Dog is now tired and took a quick nap. Greater Dog woke up and was full of excitement.

Ruby could never see herself, or anyone for that matter, killing these innocent monsters. Sure, they were called monsters, but Ruby found them more like people than anything. More like Faunus, but less human. No, she couldn't describe it.

Ruby then called over Greater Dog, who sat on her lap, and nearly crushing Ruby. Ruby then pet Greater Dog. Pet capacity at 40%. She then pet Greater Dog again, decisively this time. Pet capacity 100%. Ruby then was able to spare Greater Dog.

Greater Dog then jumped out of the armor and licked Ruby's cheek. Ruby couldn't help but pet his head a little more. The dog then jumped back into the armor, butt in the air. Ruby chuckled at this. She then went on, crossing the bridge, where she was met yet again with the skeleton brothers.

"This is it, human! Prepare for the Gauntlet of Deadly Terror!" Papyrus said, with weapon variations appearing around the bridge. Harpoon, mace, Bunsen burner, cannon... dog on a rope.

"When I give the word, it will fully activate! Cannons will fire, blades will slice! The tiniest chance of victory will remain! Are you ready? Because I! Am! About! To do it!" Papyrus exclaimed. There was a moment of awkward nothing.

"Hey bro, what's the holdup?" Sans asked.

"Holdup? What holdup? I am about to activate it right now!" Papyrus said. Nothing happened.

"That doesn't look very activated to me." Sans said.

"Well, this trap seems... a little too easy. Yeah, we can't use this one. I am a skeleton with standards! This trap has no class at all, 0/10. Away it goes." With that, the trap disengaged, each weapon going away.

Papyrus let out a sigh, then looked back at Ruby. "This was another decisive victory for the great Papyrus! NYEH... HEH... HEH?" Papyrus then went off.

"Hey kiddo, you got past all my bro's puzzles." Sans congratulated.

"Thanks Sans. But there's still my fight with Papyrus. Don't worry, I'll do my best to not kill him." Ruby promised.

"Good on ya, kiddo." Sans said.

Ruby then walked on, entering Snowdin.

A/N

Hey everyone, back with another chapter of Rose of the Underground! I'm really glad to see you all are loving this series! I'm going to make sure this goes on until the very end of the true pacifist. Also, I read your reviews, and I do agree that I've been making Ruby slightly OOC, so I'm going to do my best to fix that. Also, I will have Alphys fix Crescent Rose, but with my own twist. You'll see when it comes down to it. Anyway, for those who are worried, fear not, I am not a heartless person, and I will not have Ruby fall to genocide. I might make a special or two, but for now, next chapter is the Papyrus fight and maybe even the date. Look forward to it! I will be updating constantly, so be sure to check in periodically. See you guys in the next one!


	4. Chapter 4: Snowdin

Chapter 4: Snowdin

The first thought that came to Ruby's mind when she saw the town was that it was beautiful. Snow covered every building top, along with a Christmas tree in the center of town. At the entrance, there was a sign that said 'welcome to Snowdin.' Ruby chuckled at the pun in the town name. The first building to the entrance was a shop and an inn, along with another yellow star and a box. Ruby checked the box to see Crescent Rose and the toy knife. Ruby was confused as to how the heck they were now in this box, but didn't bother to question it. She went into the shop to see the owner was a rabbit. In the stock was some gloves like the one Ruby was wearing and a manly bandana. For food, there was some bunny shaped food. Ruby bought the bandana and some cinnamon bunnies. She then went into the Snowd Inn, which Ruby laughed at for the cleaver pun.

Ruby then payed for a room in the Inn, then went to sleep. She didn't realize how tired she was until now. Unfortunately, it was hard for her to sleep with the people in the other room snoring up a storm. Ruby was able to get about 10 minutes of sleep until she came back down.

"Well, you look like you slept pretty well, which is amazing since you were up there for only a few minutes. Here's you cash back, you can pay if you're going to stay a full night." The owner said, handing Ruby back her cash. Ruby was kind of glad she got her money back, since the hotel cost 80g just to rent a room. She went around town, talking to the locals, and even going down to the Librarby(sign was spelt wrong), getting some more info on how the underground worked. It seems that monsters turn to dust when they die, which reminded Ruby of another story she used to read about gods and monsters that turned to dust when you killed them. She assumed that it was based off of these monsters. She also found out that monsters are made of magic instead of water, which made some sense. But what confused her was that if monsters were made of magic, why were their souls weaker than human souls? Perhaps she would find out sooner or later.

She went on to see a house at the end of Snowdin with two mail boxes, one overflowing with mail, and the other being Papyrus's. Ruby knew the other mailbox was Sans's. Ruby continued down to be blinded by mist. Ahead, she could barely make out the figure of Papyrus.

"Human." Papyrus said. "You have made it this far. From what you have done and what you have said throughout our time of knowing each other, I can see you are alone down here. I can only guess how it feels to know another person who likes puzzles and spaghetti. But fear not human, for you shall be lonely no longer! I, the great Papyrus, will be your..." Papyrus hesitated. "No. No, this is all wrong! I can't be your friend! I must capture you! Then I, the great Papyrus, will finally be able to join the Royal guard!"

With that last statement, Ruby's chest emitted her soul, telling her that Papyrus was engaging her in battle. She tried flirting with him, seeing if that would end the battle quickly.

"Oh no! Flirting! But I will not fall for your charm so easily! For I am a skeleton with standards!" Papyrus said.

"I like spaghetti." Ruby said, trying to be as persuading as possible.

"Oh no! You're meeting all my standards! I guess this means I'll have to go on a date with you. Let's date later! After I capture you!" Papyrus said, sending some bones at Ruby, who was able to leap over them with ease. She tried to spare Papyrus.

"Hmm... So you won't fight. Then I'll have to use my special attack!" Papyrus stated, sending a volley of blue bones at Ruby, who didn't move. Soon, something weird happened. Her soul started to flicker, changing from red to blue. She was brought down and was hit by a bone.

"You're blue now! That's my attack!" Papyrus exclaimed. "Now, your soul cannot hover over my attacks, and now you move with your soul!"

"Well, there goes that plan." Ruby mumbled. She tried to spare again. Now, a row of bones came at her, increasing in size, then lowering. Soon, there was another volley of bones, this one making her time her jumps, jumping through the narrow gaps, getting hit a few times. She looked at her scroll to see her aura was getting to the single digits. She took a cinnamon bunny that she had and ate it, her aura increasing all the way back to 20, which was her max aura. Papyrus sent another volley at her, this one being similar to the last one.

Meanwhile, Papyrus was fantasizing over his life getting better after he captured Ruby. "People will adore me! Undyne will be really proud of me! And my brother... well he won't change much. And you... well, dating will become hard when you're captured. NYAH! Just give up already, or I'll be forced to use my special attack!"

Ruby was unnerved at this. There was another special attack? She ate another cinnamon bunny to prepare her for the attack.

"Behold, my special attack!" Papyrus said, but what came was a dog chewing on a bone. "What the- that's my special attack? Hey, you stupid dog! Stop chewing on my special attack!" Papyrus yelled at the dog, who slowly started scooting away. "Hey, where are you going? Stop!" Soon, the dog was out of sight. Papyrus sighed in annoyance. "I guess I'll have to use a regular attack."

After Ruby was done laughing at the scene, she prepared herself for the attack. Papyrus sighed again. "Here goes a completely regular attack." He then sent bone row after bone row, bone column after bone column. Soon, the dog came back with the bone, becoming an obstacle as well, and a series of bones spelling 'cool dude'. There was then a forest of bones, which Ruby used her semblance to get above. After that, there was a short bone coming at her at about 1 mile per hour. Ruby simply stepped over it. Both Ruby and Papyrus were panting after that, trying to catch their breath.

"Well... It's clear... You can't... Defeat me." Papyrus gasped. "Yeah, I see you shaking in your boots over there. Since I can't beat you and you can't beat me, I will spare you. Now is your chance to accept my mercy."

Ruby then spared Papyrus, ending the battle, her soul fading from her chest.

"Nyoh hoh hoh." Papyrus wept. "How can I ever hope to join the Royal guard when I can't even beat you? And worst off, my friend counter shall remain stagnant."

"Hey, Papyrus, if it makes you feel any better, I'll be your friend." Ruby said.

"Really? Wowie! We haven't even had our first date, and I've already managed to hit the friend zone! Who knew that all I had to do to make friends was to give them cheesy puzzles and then fight them! Ah, I just remembered! I never even asked you for your name! Where are my manners?"

"Ruby Rose." Ruby said.

"Nice name." Papyrus complimented, making Ruby blush slightly. "Well, just come by my house when you want to have that date! Oh, also, you must be trying to get back to the surface! Here, I'll give you directions! Just get to Asgore and ask him 'hey Asgore, can you show me how to get back to the surface?' and he'll take you right to the barrier!"

"Alright, thanks Papyrus." Ruby thanked, hugging him. Papyrus was a little fazed by this, but hugged Ruby back. "Yeah, I definitely need to take you up on that date."

"Well, we can start it now, if you want." Papyrus said, braking the hug.

"Oh, sure!"

"Great! I got just the place! It's somewhere I spend most of my time!" With that, the two went off. Ruby though Papyrus was taking her to Grillby's, but soon turned around and went to the front of his home.

"My house!" Papyrus exclaimed, unlocking and entering the door. Ruby followed, and the house was not what she thought it would be. The interior had a TV on a table with a couch facing it and a coffee table in front of the couch. Next to the door was a table with a rock on a plate. The kitchen was an average kitchen, sink, fridge, counter, cabinet. Everything else in the house was normal stuff. On the second floor was two doors, each of which Ruby assumed was the skeletons' rooms. "So, when you're ready to start, we can head to my room!" Papyrus said.

"Alright!" Ruby said.

"Meanwhile, have a look around!"

Ruby began having a look to see the cabinet in the kitchen was actually a really high up sink.

"Like it? I made it larger to fit all my bones inside! Go ahead, have a look!" Papyrus said, opening the door to reveal the dog from their battle. "What?! How did that dog get into my bone collection?!" Papyrus bellowed, startling the dog, who bolted. "Quick! Catch that meddling canine!" Ruby tried to catch it, but it got out the door before she could use her semblance. "Curses!"

From Sans's room, Sans came out and played a fail tune on the trombone. "Sans! Stop plaguing my life with your tunes!" Papyrus yelled.

"Well, this is a good start." Ruby joked. Papyrus chuckled.

"Well, if you want to go to my room, we can start it."

"Alright."

The couple then went to Papyrus's room, which was neater than Ruby had expected, but still a little messy. To her right was a box full of bones and a computer. Her left was a car bed, a desk with action figures, a pirate flag, and a bookcase. She looked back at the box of bones.

"Ah, yes! Those are all the attacks I used on you! Good times, feels like it was just yesterday."

"Uh, we just fought, like, 10 minutes ago." Ruby pointed out.

"Oh. Right." Papyrus said. "And for my bed, sometimes I dream about being on the surface, driving on the freeway. Wind blowing through my hair, sun gleaming down on my skin. But instead, I cruise while I snooze." Ruby laughed at his last statement.

"So, we having that date?" Ruby asked.

"Well, if you're ready to start." Papyrus said, Ruby nodding. "Alrighty! Let's get this date going!"

DATING! START!

"Well, I've never actually been on a date." Papyrus admitted.

"I'm on the same boat, bud." Ruby said.

"But don't worry! I came prepared!" Papyrus exclaimed, pulling out a book. "I snagged a book from the library on how to date! Alright, let's see... step 1: start the date. Alright, we got that down. Step 2: wear clothing to show you care." Papyrus paused at this. "Wait a second. You were wearing clothes during our fight! Not only that, but you were wearing clothes when we first met! Oh no! This can only mean one thing! You planned to date me all along!"

"Yeah!" Ruby said half-mindedly.

Papyrus seemed shocked at this. "No! You're dating level is rising!" Papyrus exclaimed, a blue bar filling up overhead. Ruby chose not to question. "Guh! Don't think you've bested me yet! For you see, I just so happen to wear clothing under my battle suit! Just in case someone were to ask me out on a date!" Papyrus exclaimed, taking off his battle suit to reveal a new suit underneath. He had a T-shirt with the words 'cool dude' written on it, along with basketball looking shoulder pads, shorts, and a cap. "Behold, my true dating form! What do you think?"

"Looks pretty cool." Ruby complimented.

"No! A genuine compliment!" Papyrus exclaimed, the blue bar rising. "However, you do not understand the true power behind this form! Which means that your compliment has no meaning!" Papyrus exclaimed, the blue bar slightly dropping. "This date will progress no further! Somewhere on this suit is a secret, which you must find!"

Ruby checked the shirt. "This shirt didn't originally say cool dude. Pro tip: all articles of clothing can be improved this way." Papyrus said. Ruby then check his hand. "Holding my hand so I'll tell you the secret? No! I must resist!" Ruby then check his hat.

"My hat? My hat... My hat! You found it! It is a gift! Curious what's inside? Go ahead, open it." Papyrus said, giving the gift under his hat to Ruby, who opened it to see a plate of spaghetti. "Do you know what it is?"

"It's spaghetti." Ruby answered.

"That's right, spaghetti! At least, that's what you think. But, oh, so wrong! This is not your average plate of pasta! This is an artisan's work! Ruby! This date will progress no longer!"

Ruby then took a bite of the spaghetti. Her face scrunched up from the taste. She couldn't quite describe the taste of it, but it was clearly not good.

"That expression on your face... you must like it!"

"Yeah, it's *cough* really good." Ruby managed, trying not to bring it back up.

"No! Your date level is rising! NO!" Papyrus exclaimed, the blue bar going off the charts.

"Ruby. I now understand your feelings for me. You're madly in love with me. Now, I will confess my feelings to you. I, Papyrus..." Papyrus hesitated. "I... I'm sorry, but I do not love you the way you do me. It's not because of your looks, because you do look good. It's just... I can't feel the same way for you. I thought going on a date with you would blossom forth feelings of love. But alas, I, the great Papyrus, does not love you the way you do."

"Papyrus.." Ruby said.

"Ugh! How could I have done this to my friend! No! No, I refuse to give in! Ruby! I will help you through your time of need! I will continue to be your cool friend! And pretend like this never happened! So please, do not cry if I no not kiss you. Because I don't even have lips. Oh, and also here's my phone number. You can call me at any time! I might even be able to help you when you're in a bind!" Papyrus said, giving Ruby his phone number.

"Thank you, Papyrus! You're the best friend ever!" Ruby said, hugging Papyrus again.

"Yeah. Also, you'll have fight Undyne to get to Asgore most likely. Just a heads up, she's a hardened warrior, and she's really strong. But she's honorable, so if you can do something to save her, she'll let you go most likely!" Papyrus said.

"Alright! Thanks again, Papyrus!" Ruby thanked.

"Don't mention it." Papyrus said, then looked at the time. "Oh dang it! Undyne is waiting for my report! I have to go, be safe, Ruby!"

"You too, Papyrus!" With that, Papyrus ran off. Ruby exited the house and went back to the waterfall entrance, heading into the next part of her adventure.

A/N

Hey guys, back with another chapter! I've been reading your reviews, and I'm so happy to hear that you guys are loving this fanfic! I never would have thought this would become as popular as it has! So once again, thank you all for tuning in! Also, I have many plans for the future chapters, such as Undyne's fight. I'll make a few twists here and there, so prepare yourselves for that. As well, I would like to remind people that I do write these during school when I can, so there might be a few rushed parts. Again, sorry for those moments. Also, please tell me in the reviews if there is anything I need to improve or if there is something that is spot on, because I want this fanfic to be about not just me, but all of you guys. That said, post your thoughts in the reviews, I'll be sure to read them. Also, one of my good friends have volunteered to make a cover image for this fanfic, so when you see the new change, be sure to give her some thanks in the reviews. With that, I will see you guys in the next one!


	5. Chapter 5: A True Warrior

Chapter 5: A True Warrior

Ruby had entered the waterfall, and it was already starting to rival Snowdin in beauty. There were crystals and dust everywhere, along with the glint of the water reflecting on the walls and the crystals, making even more light. Ruby was amazed at the beauty. She continued on to see a few monsters and a station with Sans behind it.

"Hey kiddo. How's it hangin?" Sans said.

"Hi Sans. It's going pretty good for me." Ruby said.

"Well that's good. Hey, I'm going on a break to get something from Grillby's. Care to join?"

"Sure, sounds fun."

"Cool, here, come this way. I know a shortcut." Sans said, going the opposite way of Snowdin. Somehow, they managed to get there. "See? Shortcut."

Ruby rolled her eyes. In Grillby's was the dogs that she had fought before, along with a few other monsters. They all greeted Sans as they walked in.

"Hey Sans, weren't you just here for breakfast?" One of the monsters asked.

"Nah, you must be thinking of brunch." Sans joked, everyone laughing. The two went up to the counter and sat on two empty stools. "What you thinking of havin?"

"Um... got any cookies?" Ruby asked Grillby, who shook his head. Ruby looked a little disappointed. "Alright... I'll have a burger."

"Hey, that sounds pretty good. Two burgers for us, Grillby." Sans said. Grillby nodded and went to the kitchen.

"Haven't had a burger in a while." Ruby said.

"Well, Grillby makes some killer burgers. Not literally, though." Sans said, Ruby chuckling. Soon, Grillby came back with two burgers. "Thanks Grillby. Hey, you want some ketchup?" Sans asked, holding out a bottle of ketchup.

"Nah, I'm good." Ruby said.

"Alright. More for me." Sans said, chugging the bottle. Ruby was a little grossed out at this. "Hey, Rubes, I've been meaning to ask you. You ever heard of an echo flower?"

"Yeah, I read a book on those. Don't they repeat the last thing they hear?" Ruby said.

"Yup. So, my bro sometimes talks to a flower, though it's not an ordinary echo flower. It might be a somehow sentient echo flower. Eh, something like that." Sans said. That gave Ruby slight chills down her spine. Papyrus talking to a flower that's not an echo flower? Could it be that Flowey is here? He could be watching her everywhere.

"Well, look at the time. Can't believe you pried me away from work for so long." Sans said.

"Oh, sorry." Ruby apologized.

"Hey, it's cool. Oh, by the way, I'm flat broke. Can you foot the bill?" Sans asked.

"Well, I could." Ruby said.

"Heh, just kidding. Grillby, just put it under mine again." Sans laughed, walking out. Ruby took a quick bite from her burger before heading out.

Soon, she was back at the waterfall, and continued on. This area was a waterfall with rocks flowing down. Ruby knew about hidden areas behind waterfalls and checked behind one of them to find a dusty tutu. She thought about it for a second. She hated wearing tutus, but then again, she did wear a skirt all the time. But she didn't want to wear a tutu instead of a skirt. She then decided to leave it there. Someone might be looking for it. She continued on to see a patch of tall grass in the path. She went into the grass, but stopped when she heard a familiar voice.

"Undyne, sorry to make you wait." Papyrus said to a figure in armor. "...what? Did I fight the human? Uh, yes! I fought with all my might, but... but they were too strong for me." There was another slight silence. "What? You'll take the human's soul? But Undyne, we don't have to fight her. You see..." Papyrus stopped and Ruby heard slow footsteps. "I understand. I will help in any way I can." Papyrus said, walking off. Ruby waited a moment before slowly moving through the grass, forgetting that it make an ungodly amount of noise. This sadly got the attention of Undyne. She went to the edge of the small cliff she was on and summoned an energy spear, looking around to try and find the source of the noise. She thankfully was unable to see Ruby and withdrew her spear, disappearing into the shadows.

Ruby was able to take a sigh of relief and went through the grass. Following her was the monster kid from Snowdin. "Yo, that was wicked! Did you see that? Man, Undyne looked pretty serious. Come on, we got to meet her!" Monster Kid said, running off, as well as tripping and falling face first into the ground.

The next room some pads for Ruby to walk on, which she did. The next one was one she had to figure out. She looked at the area she needed to get to and figured that they wouldn't form the bridge unless they were in a line. She then tested her theory, and sure enough, it was correct. The four pads bloomed and made a walkway for Ruby. She then got a call from Papyrus.

"Hello, Ruby. You may be wondering how I got your number." Papyrus said.

"Yeah, sort of." Ruby replied.

"Well, I just dialed in random numbers until I got your number! Anyway, I was wondering what you were wearing. A friend asked."

"A bandana." Ruby said.

"Hmm... So you're wearing a bandana. Got it! Thanks Ruby!" Papyrus thanked, hanging up. Ruby knew Papyrus was getting information for Undyne, so she was cautious. The next area was beautiful. There was a sign that said that it was the wishing room. Since they didn't have actual stars to gaze at, they used the crystals in the top of the cavern as substitutes. Around the area was a few echo flowers and a telescope. Ruby looked through the telescope to see the crystals did resemble stars in a way. But what got her attention was that the telescope had a note inside that said north wall. She checked the north wall to see it was hollow. She pushed on it and it collapsed, revealing a new path.

This lead to a dock of sorts. On the wall was a sort of history log. It explained the history of the war between humans and monsters, how it would take every monster soul of the underground just to equal one human soul. Ruby took this in. From the very beginning she had the power to destroy every monster of the underground if she wanted. But just thinking about killing Toriel... Papyrus... Sans. She would never be able to kill them. She would have to have no emotions to kill them.

As she continued on the docks, a spear landed right in front of her, Ruby letting out a little yelp. She looked over to see Undyne, preparing to throw another spear. Ruby thought fast and used her semblance to get to some tall grass at the end of the docks. She heard Undyne heading her way, and she knew it was over. Undyne then grabbed toward where she assumed Ruby was. Instead, she ended up catching Monster Kid. She put him down gently and walked away.

Ruby emerged from the grass and soon followed Monster Kid. "Yo, did you see that? Undyne just... TOUCHED ME! Oh man, are you unlucky! If you were just a little closer, she would have got you instead." Monster Kid said. Ruby was about to tell him how wrong he was before biting her tongue. He probably didn't even know that she was a human.

She continued down to see a table with cheese in cased in a pink rock thing and a yellow star. She touched the star and was filled with DETERMINATION. Going on, there was a telescope with Sans.

"Hey, kid. I was trying to make a profit by having a star seeing stand. Normally, the fee is 5000g, but for you, I'll let you try it for free." Sans said.

Ruby looked through the telescope to see only red. She then looked back from the telescope. "What? Not satisfied? Don't worry, I'll give you a full refund. Oh wait." Sans joked.

"Whatever Sans." Ruby said, rolling her eyes. She touched her left eye to see it had red paint on it. Ruby sighed and whipped the paint off her eye. Going down to a new area, she saw a whole field if echo flowers. Each one had a piece of a couple's conversation about the surface. Papyrus called her again.

"Hello! Remember that friend I told you about? Well, they came by again and said that they saw you. Their description was quite... murdery. They asked me what you were wearing, so this time I covered for you. I told them you were still wearing that bandana, since I figured you had changed by now." Papyrus said.

"Well, thank you." Ruby said, trying to still be friendly. She knew Papyrus didn't know, so she couldn't blame him.

"You're welcome. Anything for a cool friend!" Papyrus cheered, hanging up. Ruby sighed. She should have taken that tutu.

Ruby continued down another dock like area. Around her, blue lights appeared, soon erupting energy spears. Looking down, she saw Undyne again.

'Jeez, she's relentless.' Ruby thought. Ruby then began running, dodging through spear after spear. Soon, she came to a dead end. She was about to go back, but instead she was face to face with the armor clattered warrior. Undyne closed in on her, and Ruby knew it was over.

'So this is it, huh? This is where I die.' Ruby thought, but as the warrior closed in on her, something ran through the boards, cutting the link with the bridge and making Ruby fall. Ruby fell unconscious during the fall, and had a peculiar dream. It was all white, nothing except a voice.

"Woah! Someone fell! Are you okay? ...Ruby, huh? That's a nice name. . . ."

Ruby woke up to see she had landed in a bed of yellow flowers, just like when she had fallen down in the underground, the only difference being 1) she was already in the underground, and 2) the area smelled like crap. Ruby covered her nose to avoid the stench.

"Jeez, is this the sewage?" Ruby asked herself. She went on to see it was a garbage dump. There were old couches, empty DVD cases, and other trash that looked like it was from the surface. Ruby always wondered how Vale kept so clean.

Through the junk yard, she found another yellow star, a space cooler, and a training dummy like the one back at the ruins. She was about to leave when...

"Hehe. To intimidated to fight me, huh?" A deep voice said. Ruby turned to see the dummy was gone. She turned back to see it had now moved in front of her, blocking the path. "I am a ghost that lived in a dummy. My cousin used to live in a dummy, too. Until YOU came along! When you started talking to him, he thought he was in for a nice chat, but all the things you said! Horrifying! Unbelievable! It scared him right out of his dummy! Therefore, I will keep you here, torment you for all eternity!"

Ruby's soul then flashed on her chest, starting the battle. A few other dummies came out and attacked her. She managed to dodge them, as well as hit the dummy with some of their attacks.

"Hey, dummies, watch where you fire your magic attacks!" Dummy said, then paused in realization that he revealed his weakness. "Hey you, forget what I said!"

Ruby then formed a plan. Use her semblance to get the dummies to aim their attacks mainly on the mad dummy. The next attack was some dummies launching at her, as well as some shooting at her. She got in front of the mad dummy and waited for them to attack. They did, and she zipped out of the way, each attack hitting dead on.

"Hey, dummies!" Mad Dummy yelled, a bunch of dummies coming up. "You guys are USELESS! Get out!" With that, the dummies disappeared. "I've got some better guys to take care of you!" The next attack was some dummies launching at her, as well as some rockets. They homed in on Ruby, a few getting her. She formed another plan in her head. She waited for the next attack and ran in a circle, getting the rockets to fire in a spread, a few hitting the dummy.

"(No way! These guys are even worse than the others!). But who cares! Who cares! WHO CARES! I HAVE KNIVES!" Mad Dummy said, throwing a knife at Ruby. "I'm... out of knives. Whatever! Whatever! WHATEVER! I can't kill you and you can't kill me! So you will stay fighting me forever! Forever! FOREVER!" Mad Dummy bellowed, laughing maniacally until some liquid started dropping on him. "Acid rain? Oh no, forget it, I'm out!" Mad Dummy then disappeared from sight, and into sight came Napstablook.

"Oh no. I'm sorry to interrupt. I heard you coming so I came over and... oh no..." Napstablook said. "Well, I live just up here. You can visit me sometime... or not."

Napstablook then went off, Ruby following. She then saw a little pond with a yellow star. She was filled with DETERMINATION. She then went up to see two houses, one of which had it's lights on. The other house was locked. She went in to see Napstablook on the computer with a headset on. He looked over to see Ruby.

"Oh. You actually came. So... this is my house... you can hang out if you want... or not." Napstablook said.

"Thanks Napstablook. You have a nice house." Ruby said.

"Oh. Thanks. I got some tunes over there... you can check them out if you want... or not."

Ruby ignored the last statement since it seemed to affect her mood too. She checked the CDs along the wall, playing the one called 'spooktune'. It had a nice tune.

"Hey, what do you usually do for fun?" Ruby asked.

"Oh. Sometimes I use the computer... sometimes. And sometimes I lay on the ground and feel like garbage."

"Well that's... sad."

"Well, it's actually more relaxing than it sounds."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Here, do it with me." Napstablook then lay down on the ground. Ruby decided to join. She then realized that it was actually more relaxing than she had thought. After a while, the two got back up.

"Well, I got to go." Ruby said.

"Alright. Come back some time... or not." Napstablook said.

Ruby then walked to the east, there being another box and a mine shaft entrance. Inside was an old turtle with a safari suit on and a magnifying glass. In his stock was some crab apples and some Sea Tea. Ruby purchased some crab apples and a sea tea, heading out. She looked at the box and pondered. She opened the box and took Crescent Rose, replacing it with the glove. She didn't need to fight, so she might as well bring her broken weapon.

The next room, she encountered a rather strange monster. It had a cat face with black hair and goat like ears, but not as prominent as Toriel's. It also had a blue dog shirt, and it had the form of a dog.

Ruby tried talking to the monster. "hOI! i'M TEMmIE!" Temmie said, attacking with it's legs. Ruby was utterly confused. This was by far the strangest monster she's seen.

After a while, she was able to spare Temmie. She then came to another room, this one with glow mushrooms. She touched one, which glowed to reveal a new path. She did this process a few times until the path was clear. She looked south to see another path was available. She went down it to see the craziest area in all of Remnant.

It was a village full of Temmies. There were statues, pictures, and Temmies themselves everywhere. In the center, there was a shop. It too was run my a Temmie. He sold Temmie flakes of various prices, but there was also a donation box for Temmie's college funds.

After Ruby had 'admired' Temmie Village, she went on to the next room, seeing it was dimming rather quickly. There was a lantern at the entrance that illuminated the room, making the path clear. She quickly figured out the puzzle here, and ran through the maze, illuminating it every chance she got. Soon she was at the exit. The next room was completely dark. At the end of the room was a faint blue glow that resembled an echo flower. She touched it, activating the message that was hidden in it.

" ." The echo flower said. Ruby turned to see Undyne, and realized it was a trap.

"Seven." Undyne said under her armor. "Seven human souls is what we need. Six is what we have. This is your last warning. Surrender your soul or I will tear it out." Undyne then drew a spear, looking like she would charge Ruby. She braced herself for the inevitable. Her soul flickered on her chest until.

"Yo, you did it! You got front row seats to Undyne's fight!" Monster Kid exclaimed, jumping out from the tall grass. He then looked from Undyne to Ruby. "Wait, who's she fighting?"

Undyne then grabbed Monster Kid and dragged him away. "Aw, wait! Please don't tell my parents about this!"

Ruby sighed in relief. She then saw a new path and went down it before Undyne could come back. There was a narrow bridge connecting one side of the cave to the other. She was half way to the other side before Monster Kid came up to her.

"Yo, Undyne told me some stuff. You... You're a human? I mean, haha, I knew it! Undyne told me 'stay away from that human'."

"Look, if you're wondering if I've killed anyone, I haven't. I find monsters to be just like humans." Ruby assured.

"Well, that's cool. I need to get back home." Monster Kid said, starting to go off before he tripped and nearly fell off if he hadn't grabbed onto the ledge. Undyne then came, likely to take care of Ruby. Ruby didn't care about Undyne's presence. She had to save the kid.

"Come on, take my hand!" Ruby said, holding out her hand for Monster Kid, who thankfully took her hand. Monster Kid looked at Ruby like she was a hero, which she kind of was.

"Yo, Undyne... if you want to get her... then you'll have to get past me!" Monster Kid said, blocking Undyne's way to Ruby. Ruby thought he was going to get himself killed, but Undyne backed away. "Man, now I really need to get back home. Thanks, by the way."

"Thank you, too." Ruby thanked. Monster Kid then ran off to Snowdin. Ruby proceeded to the next area, where Undyne was standing on the top of a rocky spike.

"Seven. We need seven human souls to destroy the barrier. As for getting this far, I will tell you the story of our people." Undyne said, with a pause after that. "No. You know what? SCREW IT! WHY WOULD I TELL YOU THAT WHEN YOU'RE ABOUT TO DIE? NYAAAAAH!" Undyne bellowed, removing her helmet, a glint in her eye. She turned to reveal she was a fish monster with gales on the sides of her head. She also had an eyepatch on her left eye. "Alphys's history books made me believe that humans were fearsome, heroic, but you? You're weak! Hiding behind that kid so you can get away again! No more running away! It's time you learn to take on danger head on! Approach when you are ready!"

Ruby touched the yellow star that was there, and was filled with... DETERMINATION!

A/N

Yeah, that's right. Cliffhanger. I just robbed all of you and you didn't even realize it. Also, props to anyone who saw the Percy Jackson reference in chapter 4. Also, the Undyne fight will have a few twists in it, and maybe even Ruby's first defeat. Anyway, good to see you all love this series. I love it too. I am having a skele-ton of fun writing these. Anyway, won't take too long writing this, see you guys in chapter 6: Spear of Justice!


	6. Chapter 6: Spear of Justice

Chapter 6: Spear of Justice

"Alright! No more messing around!" Undyne bellowed, falling down to Ruby, spear ready. Ruby's soul flashed on her chest again, but this time, it was green. She felt Crescent Rose change. She took it out to see it was partially fixed, but enough to only block an attack. "You cannot flee until you learn to face danger head on!"

Undyne then lashed out at Ruby, who blocked each attack with Crescent Rose. Ruby thought she could out speed Undyne, but she was almost as fast. Each attack was blocked by Crescent Rose, and every few attacks managed to hit Ruby. Ruby took a crab apple and ate it, replenishing her aura.

"I'm just getting warmed up!" Undyne bellowed, lashing out jabs with her spears. Ruby's soul turned back to red, and Undyne tossed a spear, which Ruby jumped over. She then leaped over Undyne, using her semblance to make some distance. She was about to get away when Undyne threw a spear, impaling Ruby's cloak into the ground and trapping her.

"You won't get away from me that easily!" Undyne yelled, turning Ruby's soul green again. This time, Undyne lashed out from left to right, front and back. Ruby blocked and parried, dodged and jumped, trying to avoid each attack. But one attack caught Ruby off guard, hitting dead on. She felt her heart shatter, and fell. But she heard something, a voice.

"You cannot give up now! Ruby! Stay determined!" The voice said. Ruby felt her soul reforming, and another strange feeling like everything was going back in time. She was soon back to where the fight began.

"Alright! No more messing around!" Undyne bellowed, falling toward Ruby with her spear ready to impale her. Ruby was now extremely confused. But she couldn't dwell on it. Undyne was getting ready to kill her... again. Her soul flashed on her chest, turning green.

"You cannot flee until you learn to face danger head on!" Undyne said, lashing out at Ruby. This time, Ruby knew better than to underestimate her, and used everything she had to block Undyne's attacks. She didn't want to kill her if she didn't have to. When her soul turned red, she used her semblance to rush past Undyne. She again threw a spear to trap her cloak, engaging in combat again.

"You won't get away from me that easily!" Undyne exclaimed. Ruby knew this part. She blocked and parried, preparing for the strike that would take her down. It came, and she followed the pattern. Up, down, right, up, up, down, left, right, down, up. She blocked each attack, but each one made her weaker. She needed to end this fight somehow. Her soul then turned red, a spear thrown at her again. This time, she jumped over Undyne, using her semblance midair. Undyne was just as fast, though.

"Stop running and fight like a real fighter!" Undyne yelled. This time, however, Ruby's soul didn't change. After dodging through a few swings and jabs, she was able to get past. She reached a sign that said 'welcome to Hotland.' She was about to get away when she got a call.

"Hey, I was just thinking. We should get you to meet Undyne sometime. You two would make great friends!" Papyrus said.

"Papyrus, now is not a good time!" Ruby said. Undyne looked confused, Ruby giving her a sign that said 'one sec.'

"Oh, okay. Just call back when you have time." Papyrus said.

"Alright. I got to go now. Bye." Ruby said, hanging up. She then turned to Undyne. "Okay I'm good."

Undyne was now even more confused. "Right. Here, how about this? I run, you chase. Sound good? Good." Ruby said, running off. Undyne shook off her confusion and ran after Ruby. They passed a station where Sans was sleeping on the job, which stopped Undyne. Ruby took this chance to get a ways away. She looked back after crossing the bridge to see Undyne slowly coming up to her.

"Ugh... so... hot... but... I can't... give up... now." Undyne said, collapsing from the heat. Ruby panicked. She wanted to save her. Fortunately, there was a water cooler nearby, which she took a cup of and poured on Undyne's head, giving her some cooling. She got back up and realized that Ruby had just saved her life, despite her trying to kill her. Undyne wanted to kill her, but she was a noble warrior. Also, Hotland sucked. She went back to her home in the Waterfall. Ruby the sighed in relief. But something still dragged on in her head. How did she come back? Was it her determination? Or was it the magic that was held down here that resurrected her? Was it a one time deal? Or was it her pure determination? She knew she would later find answers. For now, she focused on the main task at hand. In front of her was a giant lab, along with another yellow star.

After SAVING, she entered the lab. It was almost pitch dark in it. The only light was the screen of her, which she found disturbing. Moving on through the lab, the lights came back on as a new monster appeared from a restroom of sorts(at least, she assumed it was a restroom). The monster saw her and looked surprised.

"Oh. Oh my. This is embarrassing. The human's here, I'm barely dressed, and... and..." The monster said. She then turned back to Ruby. "Um... Hi. I'm Alphys. And I already know your name, Ruby. I started watching you when you exited the ruins. When I saw you, I was going to report it to the Royal guard, but... seeing someone on a screen really makes you root for them. I cheered when you completed a puzzle, panicked when you were hurt, and got a little annoyed when you couldn't solve a puzzle."

"So you were... watching me?" Ruby asked. Alphys blushed a little.

"Y-yeah. And all the friendships you've made. Man, sometimes I wish I could be you." Alphys said. Then it looked like something hit her mind. "Oh, yeah. I should warn you. I made this... entertainment robot. You know, movie entertainment. So, I may have made him a bit more... aggressive against humans by installing an anti-human device in him for when a human comes down here. I tried to uninstall it, but... well, as long as you don't encounter him, you should be fine."

After that statement, there was a rumbling sound. "Oh no." Alphys said before the room went dark, a crashing noise filling the room, along with a robotic "Oh yes!" The lights came back on to reveal a box shaped robot with two arms and a wheel for transportation.

"Welcome, beauties, to the underground's number one entertainment channel! I am your host, Mettaton! Today, we have our special guest, Ruby Rose, the human! Everyone give her a hand!" Mettaton exclaimed, confetti shooting out around Ruby.

"Oh, so that's what you meant by entertainment." Ruby stated. Her soul appeared on her chest to see that he was now fighting her.

"Let's start your big debut with a quiz!" Mettaton said. Ruby sighed. This was going to be a long day.

[a few minutes later]

Unfortunately for Ruby, Mettaton was a crazed human killing machine(literally), but on the upside, Alphys helped her through the quiz and she wanted to help her. So she had that going for her. Also, Alphys had given her scroll an upgrade with the phone feature, allowing her to use the undernet and signed her up for the number 1 underground social media site.

"So basically, Mettaton has set up death traps all over Hotland and you can't deactivate him or the traps?" Ruby summarized.

Alphys nodded. "Pretty much. But I'll give you hints on how to get past some puzzles and traps when you need it. All you need to do is to get through Hotland and the Core, and there should be an elevator that'll take you straight to Asgore's castle. Past there is the barrier, the only thing keeping monsters underground. No monster has ever gotten through it, but you can get though it since you have a stronger soul."

"Alright. So just get through Hotland and the Core, and I should be home free? Easier said than done. I'll try, but first I need to do something."

Alphys nodded. "Whenever you're ready to enter Hotland, just use the door on the other side of the lab."

Ruby gave a thumbs up and walked out the lab. She wondered how she would get to Undyne when she saw another path southward. Down it was a river with a river man on a boat. She walked up to the person.

"Hello. I am the river man. Or am I the river woman? Doesn't matter. Where are you trying to get to?" The ferryman asked.

"I need to get to the Waterfall." Ruby said.

"Very well. Jump on." Ruby then boarded the ferry, it taking off for the Waterfall.

A/N

Undyne fight over and Ruby's first death! This was a packed chapter, I'll say that. Anyway, I might be posting a little later from now on since I'm trying to focus more on school work. But it's so hard since writing these chapters is SO MUCH DAMN FUN! Sorry, got a little carried away there. *clears throat* Anyway, I also have a play coming up, so I might not be able to update during that time. Also, I'm happy to see you all are pissed off at the cliffhanger last chapter. You're welcome. Anyway, I am debating if I should do the neutral ending first and then the true pacifist ending or just the pacifist ending. Or just the neutral ending. Tell me what you think I should do in the reviews. And no, not the killing neutral ending, because that would break Ruby's character. Also, if you choose the neutral ending, I have a surprise that I think you would like... or not. Oh God now I sound like Napstablook. Lastly, I am setting the true pacifist ending in place, just one thing that will determine the ending is your thoughts. Like I said, I don't want this series to be all about me. I want everyone to be a happy family. Also, happy to see a major lack of negative comments, so thanks for that. Sorry for dragging this author note out for this long, thank you for reading this far into it, and I just want to say one last thing: THANK YOU ALL! We just hit 1000+ views! Thank you all! I never thought this would get the love it got when I started, and I just want to say thank you all! And special thanks to those of you that left suggestions on improvement in the reviews, never would have gotten this far without your support! Again, sorry for the long A/N, see you in the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7: Besties

Chapter 7: Besties

Ruby had finally arrived at the Waterfall. Thankfully, the place she needed to get to was not far. She remembered that there was a fish like house near Napstablook's house, and she figured it was Undyne's place. At the house was a training dummy, which Ruby didn't feel comfortable with due to her last encounter with a dummy, and Papyrus at the door.

"Hey Ruby! I had this plan to make you and Undyne friends! Here we go, just stay behind me!" Papyrus said, then whispered "Make sure to give her this." He pulled out a bone with a bow on it. "She loves these." He then knocked on the door. It opened to reveal Undyne, but not in her armor. She was now wearing a black tank top and yoga pants.

"Hi Papyrus. Ready for your special one on one training?" Undyne said.

"You bet I am! And I brought a friend!" Papyrus cheered, moving to the side to show Ruby.

"Hello, I don't think we've-" Undyne cut herself off when she realized it was Ruby. Everyone stood in an awkward silence. "Why don't you two... come in."

The three then went inside. Undyne's house was pretty nice. There was a piano to the left, a table to the right, along with a giant sword, and kitchen appliances along the opposite wall.

"Make yourselves comfortable." Undyne said, trying not to lose her cool.

"Oh, by the way, Ruby brought a gift for you!" Papyrus said, pulling out the bone.

"Uh, thanks." Undyne said, taking the bone. "I'll, uh... put it with the others." She then opened a drawer with about twenty other bones, putting the new one in there. "So, shall we begin?"

"Whoopsies, I just remembered. I have to use the restroom! You two have fun!" Papyrus exclaimed, jumping through the window. Ruby nearly burst out laughing at his random stunt.

Undyne just remained unfazed. "So why are you here? To rub in your victory in my face? Is that it?"

"No! I would never do that!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Then why are you here?" Undyne asked, then realization hit her. "Wait, I get it! You want to be friends with me!"

"Yep! I never intended to kill you when we fought!" Ruby said.

"Really? How delightful! I accept! Let's frolic in the fields of friendship together! NOT! Why would I want to be friends with you? You're the only thing standing in the way of everyone's hopes and dreams! If you weren't my beloved house guest, I'd beat you up right now! Get out! I never want to see your face again!"

"Dang, what a shame!" Papyrus said, head poking through the window. "I thought Undyne could be friends with you, but I guess she is not up to the challenge."

"Challenge? What?" Undyne stuttered. "Papyrus, wait! ...Darn it. He thinks I can't be friends with you? Fuhuhu! What a joke! I could make friends with someone like you anytime! Human, we are not going to be just friends. We're going to be... Besties! I'll make you so much like me, you won't be able to think of anyone else! Fuhuhu, it's the perfect revenge! ...why don't you take a seat?"

Ruby then checked the window to see if Papyrus was still there. "I can't believe he jumped through the window." Undyne said. "Normally, he nails the landing."

Ruby then looked at the giant sword. "Oh, that? Well, Alphys's history books told me that, in tradition, humans can wield swords up to 10x their body height. Is it true?"

"Well, it's not wrong." Ruby said, and she wasn't exactly lying.

"I knew it! When I heard it, I wanted one so much! So me and Alphys designed it! She made all the modifications. She so smart, isn't she?"

"That's cool." Ruby then took a seat at the table. Undyne had an unnaturally wide smile.

"Shall I get you something to drink?" Undyne said, bringing out some tea boxes, a bottle of soda, and some sugar. "Okay, just pick one."

Ruby was about to get out of her seat when Undyne threw a spear at the table, causing Ruby to let out a quick yelp. "NO! YOU ARE THE GUEST! SIT DOWN!" Undyne yelled, then realized her outburst. "Um... why don't you point to it? You can use the spear."

Ruby then took the spear and pointed to the soda. "Soda? Well, even though you pointed to it, you don't seem happy. That's alright though. I think soda is gross too. It rots your teeth, it rots your mind, IT ROTS YOUR FIGHTING SPIRIT!"

"Why do you have it then?" Ruby asked, causing Undyne to fall silent, a slight blush on her face. Ruby then pointed to the tea.

"Tea? Alright, coming right up." Undyne said, putting the tea into a kettle. "Now we just wait." A few moments of silence followed, then a little noise. "Alright, it's done." She then poured two cups of tea and brought them to the table. "Careful, it's hot." Undyne warned. Ruby was caution with her tea. "Not that hot."

"Oh." Ruby said, picking up the cup and taking a sip. It was better than she expected.

"It's kind of funny you chose that tea. Golden flower tea. That's Asgore's favorite kind of tea." Undyne said.

"Well, I can see that. It's pretty good." Ruby said, taking another sip.

"You know, you kind of remind me of someone I used to train. Man, that takes me back. I remember one time, I wanted to prove I was the strongest of everyone, so I tried to fight Asgore. Heh, emphasis on tried. I couldn't land a single hit on him, and the whole time he refused to fight. It was actually kind of embarrassing. But after the fight, he said 'excuse me, would you like to know how to beat me?' And so he train me. And one day, I struck him down. I felt really bad about it, but then he chuckled. He started laughing. I've never seen someone be so happy to get their butt kicked!" Undyne chuckled. "Now, I get to train people to fight. Like Papyrus. But... I have to admit, I might never let him into the Royal guard. Not that he's not strong. He's actually pretty freaking tough."

"Agreed." Ruby said.

"But rather... he's too nice. I mean, he was supposed to capture you, and he ended up being friends with you. I could never send him into battle. He'd get shredded into little smiling pieces. So, I started giving him cooking lessons so that he might be able to do something with his life." Undyne then looked at Ruby to see her cup was empty. "Oh, sorry, I kind of went on a little there. Your cup must be empty. I'll get you a refill." Undyne then got up from the table and stopped.

"Wait a minute. Papyrus's cooking lesson. He was supposed to have it today! And if he's not here to have it, YOU'LL HAVE TO DO IT FOR HIM!" Undyne yelled, jumping on the counter, knocking off all the stuff on there. "That's right! Cooking has made us closer than ever! Therefore, if you take his place, we'll be closer than anyone else!" Undyne then leaped to where Ruby was, grabbing her, and jumping back to the kitchen area.

"First, let's start with the sauce!" Undyne said, stomping her foot, bringing down some vegetables from the roof. "Now, imagine these veggies as your greatest enemy! Now, pound it into the dust!" Undyne yelled.

Ruby then pet the veggies. "OH MY GOD, stop petting the enemy! Here, I'll do it!" Undyne then pounded her fist into the veggies, splattering it over the wall and their faces. "Oops, we'll scrape it off the walls later. But for now!" Undyne then grabbed Ruby again and jumped to the stove.

"Now, put the noodles in the pot!"

Ruby then put the noodles in one by one, each one clanking on the metal surface. "Good? Now, stir! As a general rule of thumb, the more you stir, the better it is!"

Ruby then stirred the noodles, finding it harder than it looked. Her stirring soon grew slow. "Ugh, fine, I'll do it!" Undyne said, jabbing the pot with a spear multiple times. Ruby was a little startled by this act. "Now, turn up the heat! Let the flames become your passionate hopes and dreams!"

Ruby then turned the knob on the stove, it getting hotter... hotter... hotter. Soon, the entire pot was on fire. "Wait, that's-" Undyne didn't finish, as the fire spread to the entire house. "Well, that was fun. So what next? Necklace making? Friendship bracelets?" Undyne said, then sighed. "Oh, what the heck. I can't force you to be my friend. And that's fine. Because if I can't be your friend... then I can pound you without regret!" Undyne bellowed.

They then engaged in battle. "I lost everything. My house is in shambles, I failed to befriend you. I don't care if you're my house guest anymore. One more fight! To avenge my fallen pride!"

Undyne then let Ruby make the first attack. She pulled back and swung with everything she had. Undyne then lost... 1 HP.

"...what? That's all you got?" Undyne asked, then a smile hit her face. "You know what?" She then dropped her spear. "I don't really want to fight you either. The way you just attacked reminded me of someone. Now I know you're not just a wimp. You're a wimp with a big heart! Look, it seems that you're destined to fight Asgore. Just know that if you kill him, I'll take the hman souls, cross the barrier, and beat the hell out of you. Because that's what friends are for, right?"

Ruby smiled. "Yep. We're friends."

"Cool. But for now,let's get the hell out of here." Undyne said, the two getting out of the now burning house.

"We should hang out again sometime. But, somewhere else. If you want to talk, just give Papyrus a ring, since I'll probably be staying there for the time being." Undyne said.

"Sure thing, Undyne!" Ruby said, holding out her fist for a fist bump. She smiled and collided her fist with Ruby's. "Good luck getting past Alphys's friend, though. He's real tough for a robot." Undyne said. "But with you, I think you'll get past him no problem." She then gave a thumbs up to Ruby.

Ruby then left, going back to Hotland to face the dangers ahead.

A/N

Woohoo! Ruby and Undyne are Besties now! So, next chapter, it's Mettaton action! Real action! Real drama! Real bloodshed! All scripted of course. Anyway, anyone else wondering if there's a live action Undertale play going on somewhere? Just me? Whatever. But I do enjoy reading your reviews, so you can post your thoughts in the reviews, positive or not. But yeah, post yo thoughts down below. RANDOM EXPLOSION NOISE! Sorry, my inner Torgue took over. Anyway, cya.


	8. Chapter 8: Hotland

Chapter 8: Hotland

Ruby went back to Alphys's lab, Alphys this time taking note of Crescent Rose. "Hey, can I see that red box?" Alphys asked. Ruby nodded and handed Alphys Crescent Rose, which made Alphys slightly shocked. "Oh my gosh! This thing looks more advanced than any other invention I've ever made, but it looks completely busted! Hmm... I think I can make it work with a few tweaks, as well as enhance it's capabilities. By an estimate, I think it'll take a day or two, maybe half if I add a few things to it. Is that alright?"

"Sure! Anything to make her work better!" Ruby cheered.

"Alright. I think I can have it done before you go off through the barrier if you get there. Not that I have no faith in you. I'm sure you can make it! And with my help, you'll get there no problem!"

"Um, sorry Alphys, but you don't seem like the fighting type."

Alphys nodded. "Yeah, I can't fight, but I'll help you through puzzles and even help you through obstacles that you would never get through on your own. I know my way through Hotland, and there are a few puzzles that will get you stumped. And when you get..."

"Oh, her name is Crescent Rose."

"...her?"

"Yeah, her. I made her myself! At the academy I studied at, you make your own weapons!"

"Well, she really is something. I'm surprised you made something this advanced. Well, if you need help, just call me."

Ruby nodded and headed out the lab. She didn't get to the next area before Alphys sent a few messages about Crescent Rose and Ruby, which made her slightly annoyed. She wondered why her scroll didn't have a do not disturb mode on it. She would have to ask Alphys to make something like that soon.

Through the next area, she encountered a Vulkin, a little volcano with legs and a face. She thought the little guy was kind of cute, so she hugged him. He warmed her heart... and her whole body. Ouch. Her defenses dropped that round. He then sent a few bolts of fire at her, which she easily dodged. She then spared the Vulkin.

After a few conveyer belts, a few steam pads, and a laser death trap, she came up to a crossroad with steam pads leading each way, the left and right leading to doorways and the north one shut off. She got a message from Alphys that told her to try the left one first. It reminded her of something she played back when video games were new, something like 'space invasion' or something.

There was a note that told her that she had one shot, which she quickly figured out. She basically moved the blocks out of the way and shot the arrow on the other side, generating a victory tune. She did the same thing with the other side, opening the door to the north. Past the door was a few stone pillars with steam pads on them, which led her to a dark room.

"Oh, this area seems a little dark, huh? Here, I'll hack into the Hotland light system." Alphys said, turning on the lights to reveal a kitchen..? "Oh no."

"Oh yes!" A familiar robotic voice said. Ruby turned to see Mettaton with a chef's hat. "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to Mettaton's cooking show! Staring myself, Mettaton, and the lovely human, Ruby Rose! Give her a hand!" There was some clapping. "Today, beauties, we will be baking a cake! But before we can, we need some key ingredients! We need flour, sugar, and some eggs! Go grab them, Ruby!"

Ruby decided to not fight and play along like she did with Papyrus, except not at all. She grabbed some flour, sugar, and eggs from the counter and put them next to Mettaton. "Excellent! We have everything we need to make the cake! Oh wait! How could I forget the most important ingredient? One human soul!" Mettaton then pulled out a chainsaw and inched toward Ruby. She was about to use her semblance to get out of there when her scroll went off.

"Sorry, I need to take this." Ruby said, holding up a finger to signify she needed a sec. She then took out her scroll.

"Hey, can you put this on speaker?" Alphys asked.

"Sure." Ruby replied, putting her scroll on speaker.

"Now, can't you make the cake without a human soul?"

"Why, that's ridiculous! What else would we use?" Mettaton asked.

"Well... can't you make a... substitute?"

"A substitute?"

"Um, well, I mean-"

"That's a great idea! In fact, I just so happen to have a human soul cake substitute can right over here! Go get it!" Mettaton announced, pointing to a can on a table a little ways away.

Ruby found this strange, but didn't bother questioning. She tried to grab the can, but the table flew up, going further up and up.

"Did you think it would be that easy? If you do not get to the can in time, we'll have to go with the original recipe!" Mettaton laughed, flying up. Ruby got another call from Alphys.

"Hey, this looks pretty bad. But don't worry! I installed an app on your scroll! You see that new yellow button? Push it." Alphys said. Ruby pushed the yellow button, her scroll making a noise. Soon, a new form of Crescent Rose flew in. The gun part was on the bottom and the scythe part split in two, forming wings. Ruby assumed it was a jet pack.

"How in the-" Ruby tried to ask.

"I was able to finish the prototype of that mode just now. This'll be a good test for it. It uses dust rounds as propellant, as well as using the blades as wings for added mobility." Alphys explained.

"Alphys you wonderful monster." Ruby said. By the silence, Ruby could tell Alphys was blushing.

"Now, hurry up, or Mettaton won't hesitate to use the other method."

Ruby nodded and put on the jet pack. She pressed a button on the handle and took off. It was way faster than any other jet pack she'd ever seen. The use of dust rounds, as well as Crescent Rose's performance to allow it to propel her into enemies, makes it for one fast flying jet pack.

Of course, Mettaton wouldn't make it easy. He threw many baking ingredients at Ruby, like chocolate chips, flour, and other things of the sort. Ruby looked at her scroll. Only 30 more seconds.

'Shit. I might not make it.' Ruby thought to herself. Then she paused. 'Crap. I might not make it.' Ruby didn't like swearing.

Fortunately, she made it to the top with ten seconds to spare. "Well, good job! Champagne cheers, high five, slow clap! You made it to the substitute! That means you have bested me this time! But don't worry, beauties! There are many more like these to come!" Mettaton exclaimed. He started off, but turned around. "Oh, and we already made the cake. Haven't you ever seen a cooking show?"

Ruby laughed a little at that last statement. She did take notice of how many cooking shows have made the food ahead of time. She remembered how Yang used to make fun of those chefs at how they made it clear as day that they can't actually cook. They used to do that when they were bored.

"Man, now I'm homesick." Ruby complained. Sure, down here she had friends, but back on the surface, at least she was at home. She shook her head. 'Now's not the time to be down, Ruby. You still have a mission, and that's to get back to the surface, as well as free the monsters if possible.' Ruby thought to herself. She mainly agreed with the last part. These monsters- no, people, she should say, don't deserve this torment of never knowing what the sun looks like. She is a huntress, and huntresses help people in need.

Finishing her inner monologue, she continued on. Past the kitchen area was an elevator with the letters 'R1' above the door. She stepped into the elevator and selected the only other floor available at the time. Soon, she was at 'R2'. There was a clearing there with another post with Sans, a Vulkin, and another monster she had never seen before, the two holding some sort of hot dog.

"Hey kid. Want a 'dog? Yeah, 'dog. It's short for hot dog. I'll sell em to ya for only 15g. Normally it's 50g, but I'll make a discount for your first one." Sans said, winking. Ruby shrugged and gave Sans 15g, which he traded for a 'dog.

Ruby went on and encountered another enemy. This one was a plane(?). It had a strange wig, but other than that it was a normal plane. Ruby approached the Tsunderplane, but made sure to not get too close.

It then struck, flying at Ruby. She easily dodged the attacks, as well as able to get close to Tsunderplane, who, for some reason, was blushing wildly. Ruby then spared Tsunderplane.

"Well, that was quick." Ruby said. She went down the path, seeing another pathway. Down it was a stained apron. Ruby thought for a second. Would it be of help to her? Her bandana was getting a little worn, and it might give her slight armor. She ditched the bandana and took the apron.

Continuing down the area, Ruby found another puzzle. There were three switches on a conveyer belt, along with a laser system blocking her path. She got another call from Alphys.

"Okay, this puzzle requires some explaining. You need to hit all three switches in a pattern. If you hit them in the wrong order, it'll reset. It shouldn't be that tough though. I'll tell you the pattern along the way." Alphys explained. Ruby shrugged and went on the conveyer belt. She then hit the switches. One. Two. Before she could hit the third one, she got another call.

"Okay, hit the third one!" Alphys exclaimed. However, from the distraction, Ruby missed the third switch. Fortunately, the laser system deactivated. "Uh, hehe, looks like you only needed to hit the two switches." Alphys said a little nervously.

Ruby rolled her eyes and continued on. The next puzzle stumped her for a while, especially since Alphys wasn't there to talk her through it. Fortunately, she was able to figure it out soon enough. She followed the pattern left, down, down, up, down, left, up, up, left. She then was past the puzzle. Past there was another star, which she touched. Continuing on, she was met with the two guards from the first area.

"Yo, we received reports of a human nearby, so... yo, be careful. Also, tell us if you see the human." The first guard said. The second guard seemed to say something to the first one. "What? That's the human?" The second nodded. "Oh. Well. This is embarrassing. So, we're going to have to, like, kill you and stuff now."

Ruby's soul flashed on her chest, engaging them in battle. She noticed how grimy the second guard's armor was, and offered to shine his armor. She used her semblance to rush around the guard's armor, quickly rubbing off the grime. Apparently, it also caused slight frictions making the armor hot.

"Armor... too... hot." The second guard said, ditching the chest plate. "Better." The first guard now seemed nervous. It took a while for Ruby to understand the situation.

'Good God.' Ruby thought to herself, feeling her face get a little warmer. She hoped her face wasn't as red as she felt. She shook it off and went up to the first guard. "Just tell him." Ruby whispered to him. After one more attack, guard 1 spoke.

"Hey, look bro, I... really like you. I like to fight with you, stand guard with you, do everything as a guard with you." He said. There was a moment of awkward silence. "Uhh... I mean, um-" He started, but was cut off by guard 2.

"Do you... Mean it... bro?"

"Y-yeah! Of course I do!"

Another moment of silence. "Do you... want to get some ice cream?"

"Yeah! I would love to!"

Ruby then spared the two guards, ending the battle. Ruby sighed. "That was dramatic." She said to herself. She continued on, coming up to yet another dark room.

"Another dark area? Here, no problem. Let me just hack into the lighting system again." Alphys said. The lights came on to reveal a news set. "Oh no."

"Oh yes! Welcome, beauties, to the MTT news! Today, we have our head reporter out in the field! Sweetie, just find something interesting in the area." Mettaton said. This time he was wearing a red suit... that's it, really.

Ruby went around, seeing a variety of things, like a book, present, basketball, a cup of water, and a dog. She went to the present. "Oh my! A present! What could be inside? Only one way to find out!" Mettaton exclaimed. Ruby then decided to report it. Sure, it could be a trap, but Ruby was always one for curiosity. "Lovely viewers, our reporter has found a present! This calls for an unwrapping report! Darling, just open the box and we'll see what's inside!"

Ruby took the top off the box to reveal... a bomb. "Oh my! It's a bomb! In fact..." The news set fell, revealing that all the items were bombs. "Everything is a bomb! That basketball is a bomb!" The basketball then caught a flame. "That dog is a bomb!" The dog's tail caught a flame. "Our dear nine viewers! Ruby has only two minutes until the bombs detonate!"

The bombs then spread out, making it difficult for Ruby to get them all. She then got another call from Alphys. "Dang. This is bad. But don't worry! I updated the app! Try pressing it!" Alphys said. Ruby pressed the button again, and a new form of Crescent Rose came. This one had the scope as a visor and the scythe now looked like scissors. She guessed that it was a defuse mode, which was pretty cool, Ruby had to admit. She went up to one of the bombs and fought.

She looked through the scope and waited for the bomb to get in the middle. When it did, she gripped the trigger, defusing the bomb. "Great! Just do that with all the bombs! Try going in a counter-clockwise path." Alphys suggested. Ruby didn't argue. She used her semblance to get to the next bomb, defusing it with relative ease. She did the same thing with the other bombs until the water was left.

"I've trapped the water in the middle. Defuse it." Alphys said.

"Never thought I would hear that sentence today... or ever." Ruby chuckled. She rushed to the center, quickly defusing the water. Just thinking about that statement made Ruby smile.

"Well, well! You have defused all the bombs! Now the bomb won't go off in two minutes! It'll go off in two seconds!" Mettaton laughed. There was an awkward pause. "...what?"

"Don't worry, Ruby! I was able to hack into the bomb and defuse it!" Alphys exclaimed.

"Curses! Foiled again by the great doctor Alphys!" Mettaton exclaimed.

"That's right! You can't stop us when we work together!"

"Do not get cocky! I still have some tricks up my sleeve!" Mettaton said, flying off.

Ruby then proceeded, seeing a metal structure in the distance. "That's the Core. That's where the elevator to Asgore's castle is. We get there, you're home free." Alphys said.

"The Core." Ruby repeated. She was slightly amazed at how she had gotten this far. She then remembered that she hadn't talked to Papyrus in a while. She called him.

"Hotland? That place is a bust. Why can't you just take a bus?" Papyrus said.

"Because that would be easy." Ruby joked. The two laughed a little and caught up. Apparently, Papyrus had a surprise for her next time she got back to Snowdin. Ruby was excited to see the surprise, so she took the elevator to L1 and took the boat to Snowdin.

Thankfully, Papyrus's house wasn't far. "Hey Ruby! Did you come for that surprise?" Papyrus asked.

"Yup! I mean, I also came to see you again, since it's been a while." Ruby said.

"Alrighty! Here's the surprise! Undyne, can you please get it?"

"Alright." Undyne said, going into the shed by the house. She came out with a white dog in her arms.

"Surprise! It's a dog for you!" Papyrus cheered. "When you were going through my puzzles, I noticed you had a high passion for dogs."

"Well, it's kind of because I have a dog back home." Ruby said.

"Oho! Nostalgia! Anyway, I decided to get you a gift so that you'd have something to remember us with back on the surface, so Undyne and I found this dog!"

Ruby was at a loss for words. Her own dog? As a reminder of everyone down here for when she returned? She hugged both Papyrus and Undyne. "Thank you guys."

The two chuckled at Ruby's happiness. "It's the least we can do for our great friend!" Papyrus said.

"Yeah. And I kind of want to make up for trying to kill you so much." Undyne said.

"Well, you're forgiven." Ruby said, holding out her fist for a fist bump, which Undyne accepted. Ruby then took the dog and pet him.

"Got a name for him?" Undyne asked.

"Not yet. I'll think of one sooner or later." Ruby said. Ruby then put the dog down, then looked at him, trying to think of an appropriate name. "Hmm... how about Toby?"

"Toby? Sounds pretty good, actually." Undyne said.

After a few minutes of talking, Ruby and Toby went off, back to Hotland.

A/N

There we have it! Ruby now has a companion! Also, for those confused by why I named the dog Toby, it's because Toby is the person that made the game, as well as there being a common joke about the dog in Undertale being referred to as the Toby Dog. But yes, next chapter is the Muffet fight! Hope you're just as excited as I am! Also, thank you guys so much for reading this fanfic! Last week it was at 1k views, and it just skyrocketed from there to 4k+ views! I cannot express my sheer surprise and gratitude, so once again, thank you for supporting this fanfic! Also, I have seen you all supporting the true pacifist ending, which doesn't come as a surprise to me, but I am a little disappointed. I was slightly hoping you guys would want the neutral ending then pacifist, but hey, I'm a man of my word. Depending on the votes from here to Mettaton's fight, it will be pacifist ending. Again, if you do not get the ending you want, sorry, I put this on a vote. If you want to vote which ending you want to see, post it in the reviews. I love reading your thoughts on this, positive and negative(though I prefer positive). Also, I would like to let you in on an extension to this story suggested by sharpstrike. I will be making a sequel to this story, but within this story. I just don't want to make a new story on the same plotline if that makes sense. So once again, thank you all for staying with me, I apologize for the long author note, and I will see you next chapter.


	9. Chapter 9: Spiders Dancing

Chapter 9: Spiders Dancing

On the new floor available to the two was a bake sale. Ruby remembered something like this back at the ruins. She remembered she bought a spider donut from one of the webs for 7g. Here, the prices were ridiculous. Spider donuts and spider ciders were 9999g, the maximum amount of money she could have in her account at once. At the order table was a spider lady. She had six arms and seven eyes. Other than that, she seemed like a completely normal person.

Ruby went on, coming up to a series of jump pads. The east door was closed off, and Ruby knew that it was one of these traps again. She headed to the north side first, taking care of that lock with ease. The southern one had a conveyer belt that lead to the next lock. She took care of it with ease as well. She then proceeded through the newly opened door. The next area was creepy to say the least. There were giant webs everywhere. Ruby and Toby walked through the area, but when they came up to a large web area, that was where they got trouble.

"Toby, you stay here." Ruby said. Toby listened and sat down, waiting for the queue to follow.

Then, there was a quiet, yet sour, voice. "We heard that there was a human coming. We heard they like to step on spiders. We heard that they like to tear their legs off. We heard their blood is especially tasty." Soon, there was a visible figure. It was the spider lady from the stand. This time, she had a look in her eyes that told Ruby she wouldn't go easy on her. Ruby prepared herself for the incoming battle. Her heart flashed on her chest, but not red this time. Now, it was purple.

"What in the..." Ruby said. Then she realized the same thing happened with Papyrus and Undyne. This must be Muffet's ability. Ruby pondered what advantage she would have on her. Papyrus's ability made Ruby's soul stay low to the ground, Undyne made her not be able to flee and have to block her attacks, so what was Muffet's?

That was answered quickly by spiders coming at her on the web she was on. She tried to get off the web, but instead jumped to another web. She quickly realized that this was her ability. She had to stay on the webs. She used this knowledge to her advantage and dodged through the spiders.

"Oh, I nearly forgot. It's time to feed my pet! Say hello to him." Muffet said. The next attack was a nightmare for Ruby. After a few spiders, a giant... thing tried to eat Ruby. She acted quickly and climbed up the webs to avoid getting eaten alive. She eventually had to drink her sea tea, which boosted her speed admirably. That combined with her semblance, she was almost faster than sound. Each spider Ruby dodged with ease, but there were a few that came faster than she could react, getting a bit of her aura down. Ruby didn't know how long she could hold out.

"Ahuhuhu. You are getting tired, are you not? Good. It's time to end-" Muffet was about to end the fight with one last attack when a spider came up to her. "Huh? The division in the ruins? What about it?" There was a bit of silence. "They did donate to our cause? I'm sorry, human. The person must have been referring to another human. I'm terribly sorry for the confusion."

"Yeah, no problem. It was actually some tasty food." Ruby said.

"Really? I knew human's would love our food! Once again, sorry for the confusion. We will get out of your way." With that, Ruby spared Muffet. She then let out a sigh of relief and called over Toby. The next area was a set of sorts. Or a trap, if you would. Ruby then heard the familiar robotic voice coming from the tower.

"Is that you, my dear?" Mettaton asked, coming out. The sight almost made Ruby burst out laughing. Mettaton was now wearing a blue dress. He then began singing about how Ruby should leave or else she'll be locked away in the dungeon. At the end, a trap door opened underneath Ruby, causing her to fall. This trap was similar to a puzzle Papyrus used. If she remembered correctly, it was a random puzzle generator. She hated random things.

"Now, this is the random puzzle generator! Once I activate it, it will generate a puzzle no one will know the answer to! Blue tiles are water tiles, pink tiles do nothing, red-" Mettaton cut himself off. "Wait a minute, didn't you already hear this a hundred rooms back? Yes, that's right, you already know this. Well, let's not delay! If you do not make it to the other side in time, a firewall will catch you! Good luck, Ruby!"

The RPG(random puzzle generator) activated, various colors flashing around and stopping on a pattern completely random. Came as advertised. Ruby then began navigating, getting shocked a few times, other random stuff. After a few minutes of this, time ran out. "Time's up! The firewall is closing in! Goodbye, Ruby Rose!" Mettaton laughed as the firewall closed in on her. As it was about to incinerate Ruby, it stopped.

"Don't worry, Ruby! I hacked the firewall system, stopping it!" Alphys exclaimed.

"Curses! Alphys, you have foiled my plans again! But this time, I win! Green tiles summon monsters to fight you! And that monster... Is me!"

Ruby then engaged Mettaton in battle. She knew Mettaton would most likely fight to the end, so how would she fight?

"Hey, I updated your scroll again." Alphys said. Ruby pressed the yellow button again, this time her soul turning yellow and upside down. Crescent Rose appeared in Ruby's hand again, but now it was in the sniper form, but the barrel was different somewhat. She tried her luck and fired at Mettaton. A yellow bolt shot out, striking Mettaton straight on.

"Augh! You have defeated me! Curses, I'll be back, etc." Mettaton exclaimed, vanishing from view.

Alphys sighed. "We did it. I don't think we'll see him for a while. Also, that is another prototype that I finished. It seems it works wonders! Anyway, the entrance to the Core is just up there. I'm finished with the prototypes for Crescent Rose. I just need to fit her with the modifications and she'll be finished. It should be done by the time you get through the Core."

"Sweet. It looks like there's a hotel up here. Is that where the entrance is?" Ruby asked.

"Yes. In the back of the hotel is the entrance to the Core."

Ruby nodded and went on. She called over Toby and went on. She saw a sign that said 'no pets allowed' and told Toby to wait outside. She was about to walk in the hotel when she heard a familiar voice.

"Hey kiddo. Finally made it through Hotland?" Sans said.

"Oh, hi Sans. Yeah, Hotland is now behind me. Just need to get past the Core and I'm home free." Ruby cheered.

"That's great. Hey, you think you can spare a moment? Food here's nice, so how's about we get some grub?"

"Sounds great."

"Cool. Follow me, I know a shortcut." The two then went off down an alley. They were then in a fancy restaurant. "So, have you been holding up alright?"

"Yeah, I've been doing good."

Sans shook his head. "That's not what I meant. What did it feel like?"

Ruby raised her eyebrow. "What do you-" she then realized. The time she had died fighting Undyne. She had come back. But how did Sans know?

"You see, you didn't come back by pure luck or destiny. You revived yourself through your determination."

"What? Determination?"

"Ever found a yellow star and touch it? You feel that warmth flow through your veins? Your wounds disappear? Through your determination, you can do practically anything."

Ruby's eyes widened. A thought ran past her head. "Even going back in time?"

Sans nodded. "You see, it's a very complex thing. But in general, human determination is far greater than monster determination. Well, I would say more, but you'll figure it out later." Sans winked. "But the real reason I brought you here... has nothing to do with determination."

Ruby looked at him. "What?"

"You see, one day, I found a strange door. So I practiced knock knock jokes. One day, I crack a joke. 'Knock knock' I say. This time, there was an answer. 'Who's there?' At first, I was surprised, but then I continued. 'Dishes.' I say. The voice responded 'dishes who?' Then I reply 'Dishes a really bad joke.'"

Ruby laughed. Sure it was a pretty crappy pun, but it was pretty clever.

"And she had the same reaction. So I continue to crack jokes, and she keeps laughing. Eventually, she cracks a joke. It was actually a really good pun. Well, for my standards."

Ruby chuckled. "Yeah, your pun standards are real low." Ruby joked.

Sans chuckled. "True. So everyday, I go there and talk to her, jokes a few times. One day, I was cracking some jokes as usual when she didn't laugh at one. I asked her what was wrong. She told me that a human had fallen down."

Ruby's eyes widened. He was talking about Toriel. "Then, she asked me something." Sans continued. "She told me to take care of you. To make sure they come out of this alright. Don't you get what I'm saying? If it weren't for her" Sans' eyes grew dark. "You would be dead where you stand."

Ruby reached for her scroll just in case she needed to call in Crescent Rose, but fortunately, Sans' eyes regained their pupils. "Sorry about that. Didn't mean to scare you."

Ruby sighed and put her scroll away. "It's fine. Just give me a heads up next time." Ruby joked.

Sans smiled. "Sure kiddo. But... it looks like your greatest challenges await you through the Core. So... try not to die too many times, kid."

Ruby chuckled and held out her fist. "I'll do my best. Dying isn't on my big plans for today... even though I did it once."

Sans chuckled again and fist bumped Ruby. "Well, see you around, kiddo."

"See you later, Sans."

With that, Sans walked off and Ruby went back to the entrance to get Toby. She had a plan.

A/N

Hey guys, Hotland is now in the past! The last thing left is the Core and possibly Asgore. Or will it be Ruby's 'best friend?' Well, we'll have to see in a few chapters. Also, once again, thank you all for the amount of support you guys give me. I could never have gotten this far without you guys. So this is Erecles, signing off.


	10. Chapter 10: Core

Chapter 10: Core

After that dinner with Sans, Ruby had severely lost her appetite, so she continued to the Core, but not before buying some useful items at the shop in the hotel. Although, can you even call it a hotel, I mean I didn't receive a mint on my pillow or anything.

Once Ruby was stocked up, she headed off to the Core. Thankfully, Alphys had a plan, as always. "If my maps are correct, which they should be, you can take that elevator to the entrance of Asgore's castle." Alphys said.

Ruby tried calling the elevator, but nothing happened. "Alphys, the elevator isn't working." Ruby said.

"What? That's odd. Well, no matter. There shouldn't be that many monsters around here, so you should be able to get through here no problem." Alphys explained.

"Okay, so which direction should I go?" Ruby asked.

"Let's see... try the right side. That one's shorter. And less confusing." Alphys said. Ruby went through the right door to find a dead end.

"Alphys, you really need to update those maps." Ruby said.

"What?! It's a dead end? I think this might be a trap... be careful, Ruby."

Ruby nodded and went down the opposite path to see it was still in tact, but two shadowy figures were standing there, but fortunately ran off. Ruby didn't feel any safer, though. "What was that?!" Ruby half yelled.

"That's... new. I have a feeling Mettaton is pulling us in to a trap, so watch out." Alphys said.

Ruby then took in her surroundings. The Core was super high tech, probably able to power all of Vale, but then again, it was able to keep all the power running in the underground, and God knows how many monsters are down here.

Continuing on, she came up to a laser system blocking her path. "Those lasers seem to be blocking your path. But they are also moving, so just walk through them in their color sequence. Keep moving through orange lasers, but stop on blue ones. Easy." Alphys said.

"Easier said than done." Ruby said. Fortunately, she was able to get past the lasers with relative ease. At the next area, she was met with new enemies, but similar to the enemies in the ruins. One was Final Froggit, the other Whimsalot. Both looked pretty cool, Ruby had to admit.

Both of them attacked, each one being shockingly powerful. Just from a few attacks, Ruby's aura was at half. She had to act quickly.

She consoled the Whimsalot then prayed. Whimsalot them learned that it had much more to learn about the world, thus Ruby spared him.

Ruby then did something mysterious in front of Final Froggit. It seemed to be affected. Ruby was then able to spare it.

"Hey Alphys, you didn't tell me they would be freaking tough as nails!" Ruby half shouted.

"Sorry, I thought you would be able to spare them before they could attack. My fault. But those aren't the only monsters in the area. I'm picking up stronger readings in the Core, so be cautious." Alphys said.

Ruby sighed. Her trust in Alphys was starting to drop. She was starting to think that Alphys was trying to get her killed. The next area was filled with blue lasers. "Oh my. That's a lot of lasers. Don't worry, I'll shut them down!" Alphys said. The lasers didn't stop. "Uh oh. I can't hack into the laser systems. Okay... give me a second... I got an idea. I'll shut down the Core's power long enough for you to get through."

The power then shut off, as well as the lasers. Ruby was walking through when Alphys yelled "Wait! It's turning back on!" Ruby instantly stopped moving. The lasers, along with the power, turned back on. "This is bad. Alright, I got another idea. I'll shut the power down again, and you use that super speed ability you have."

"Hey, not a bad plan." Ruby said. She waited for the power to turn back off and readied her semblance. The power shut down and she ran full speed, nearly crashing into the wall. "That went well."

"Yeah. I was expecting a lot more to happen. Good job, Ruby." Alphys said.

Ruby then went on to see a fork in the road. "There are three different paths. This is confusing."

"Alright, let me see... there's a puzzle to the west, a door to the east which is locked, and a switch to the north. I think you should go for the puzzle first." Alphys said.

Ruby nodded and went to the west to find a puzzle similar to the ones in Hotland. She knew how to do these. In less than a minute, she had it done. "Can I have one challenging puzzle?" Ruby joked. She then headed north to find a trash can with a Glamburger, still fresh. She decided tit wouldn't be too weird to take it, since it was good food, and free at that.

She headed toward a walkway where she saw a switch when something jumped out at her. She then saw a Knight Knight and a Madjick. Knight Knight sent a sun at her that sent bullets at her, while Madjick sent bolts of magic at her. Each taking part of her aura.

"Crap. If this continues, I'll..." Ruby shook her head. "No. I promised Sans. I won't die here, not now."

Ruby then tried to sing Knight Knight to sleep. Thankfully for her, it worked, allowing her to spare him. Madjick then sent a few more bolts at Ruby, which she was able to dodge. Ruby then stared into the orbs around Madjick. After staring at them both for long enough, she was able to spare Madjick.

She didn't want to fight the other monsters around here, so she used her semblance to run through the bridge, hitting the switch on the way. To the east, she heard a door unlock and ran straight to it. Through it was another bridge with an elevator door, a yellow star, and another odd looking door. She went to the star and was filled with DETERMINATION. She then went to the elevator to see it was working and went back to the entrance to the Core.

"Oh, of course now it works." Ruby grumbled. She went back in the elevator and went through the other door to see Mettaton. "Alright, let's get this over with. Trap, solve it, you try to kill me, Alphys saves the day, confetti."

Mettaton laughed. "Foolish human. You are so easily fooled. You are oblivious to those who say they're your friends. One day, that'll be your downfall."

Ruby was confused. "What are you saying?"

"Are you still oblivious? Alphys never installed an anti human code into me! She was tricking you to make her seem like the good guy. Again and again you would fall into my traps, and again and again she would save you. You would see her as a hero, when all she is is a con."

Ruby took a step back. "Alphys... lied?" Ruby asked in disbelief.

"I know... it must be tough, loosing a friend so dear. I have felt that only once. But I have no desire to kill. My only desire is to please the audience. But... if the crowd wants your death, then..." He then laughed maniacally. "SO BE IT!"

The doors then shut behind Ruby, locking her in with Mettaton. "Ruby Rose, this is your doom!"

Outside, Alphys was banging on the door. "Hey! What's going on? The door just shut!"

"This time, Alphys will not save you! This time it's real action! Real drama! Real bloodshed!"

Ruby's soul then flashed on her chest. She called in Crescent Rose in the blast form, her soul flipping and becoming yellow. She shot a few bullets at Mettaton, but he just laughed. "My dear, did you really think that would work? Haven't you ever heard of acting?"

Alphys then called Ruby on her scroll. "Hey, I know you probably don't trust me anymore, but hear me out. There's one last way to beat him! You know how he always faces forward? There's a switch on his back! Just turn him around and flip it! He'll be vulnerable!"

Ruby was about to ask why she should trust her, but then realized that there was no other option. Ruby sighed. "Woah, never saw that mirror behind you." Ruby said.

"A mirror? Where? I need to look my best for this!" Mettaton exclaimed, turning around.

'Oh, you'll be looking your best, alright.' Ruby thought, flicking the switch on Mettaton's back.

"Did... did you just... flick my switch? Hehehe. You must really want to see my true form!" Mettaton laughed as his form exploded in a thick white cloud. A shaded figure could be seen, as well as stage lights coming down. The only thing heard at the time was a sexy robotic "OH YES!"

"Dang it, Alphys. Why this of all things?" Ruby said.

A/N

Hey people! Hope you liked this chapter! Also, just a heads up, this is being written on the day I will be releasing chapter 8, so sorry for some rushing. Also, my internet has been down, so I couldn't publish for a while, but fear not, I am not dead. Nor is this story! I shall only die by glamour! Wait... That means I'll die next chapter... F***. Jk :). Anyway, I will hopefully be posting soon, so watch out for that! As well, I am working on my first non RWBY related fanfic, so look forward to that! That said, see ya!


	11. Chapter 11: Death by Glamour

Chapter 11: Death by Glamour

"Heheh. I've been aching to use this form! This is your final battle, Ruby Rose! Prepare for you death!" Mettaton laughed.

(For best effect, watch Rough animation of Death by Glamour to get a visual of this, as well as play Death by Glamour while reading this.)

Mettaton then started dancing to a beat that had started. Ruby wasn't one for dancing, but in this case, she didn't know if she had a choice. Then, Mettaton lashed out at her, jabbing his sharp feet at her, staying fabulous in the mix. One leg hit Ruby dead on, her nose letting out a drip of blood. She wiped it off with her sleeve and continued dodging.

[meanwhile at Grillby's]

Sans, Papyrus and Undyne were eating some burgers while Papyrus watched the TV. Soon, Papyrus yelled "Guys, look at the TV! It's Ruby!"

"Ruby?" Sans and Undyne asked in unison. Sure enough, Ruby was on TV, battling Mettaton. They then saw her get it, blood escaping her nose. Papyrus's jaw literally dropped to the floor while Undyne and Sans watched in awe.

Ruby was gasping for air. "I can't... continue... like this... for much... longer." She gasped. She wiped some sweat off her forehead before going back in, dodging explosions and kicks. Soon, she was caught again, a kick hitting her straight in the eye, giving her a black eye.

The three at Grillby's gasped, Sans accidentally lighting his eye in fear. Fortunately, none of them saw it.

Ruby then touched her eye to see there was also a cut under it, bleeding badly. "Crap. My aura is really low." Ruby then took a Starfeit and drank it, all her wounds healing, as well as filling a chip in her tooth. She then felt better than ever, and started dancing in counter of Mettaton. "Now this is more like it!" Ruby exclaimed, dodging every attack with grace and beauty. Soon, Mettaton's heart was vulnerable, and she fired Crescent Rose at him, hitting it dead on. Mettaton's arms blew off, along with his legs, making him immobile.

Back at Grillby's, Papyrus and Undyne were cheering while Sans sighed in relief.

(Death by Glamour stops playing.)

"Heh... guess that's it, huh? Well, would you look at the ratings?" Mettaton said. Ruby looked at the ratings screen to see it had reached over 10000 viewers. "This is the most viewers I've ever had! That means it's time for the 10k special. Whoever calls first will get to talk to me live!"

The phone soon rang. "Ah, our first caller! Hello? You're on live."

There was silence, then "oh. Um... hi Mettaton. I've been a big fan since your big debut."

"Oho! An old fan! Well, it's nice to have you on the show!"

"Um... thanks... but... I really like seeing you on TV. It gives me inspiration... if you were to leave the underground... oh... I didn't mean to go on like that..."

"Wait, don't go!" But it was too late. Napstablook hung up. "Oh well. Who's the next caller?"

Then, the phone line filled up with people telling Mettaton to not leave and how they would be so sad if he left. "Well, it seems that my trip to the surface will have to wait! The underground needs a star to keep them having hope! Human- no, Ruby! When you make it to the surface, become the star that I am! So that I have someone to rely on to keep the humans' hopes going!"

Ruby was shocked at that. Mettaton, the one who was trying to kill Ruby a second ago, is asking her to be the star of the surface to keep everyone's hopes going. "I will. I promise I will be the star you would want me to be!"

Mettaton smiled. "Thank you, darling. I'm just going to take a nap." With that, Mettaton powered down. The doors opened and Alphys rushed in.

"Oh my gosh! Is he..." She then sighed. "Thank God. It's just the batteries. I mean, they're just robots. We can always rebuild them. Let's go. The elevator to Asgore's castle is just up here. Oh, and I've completed Crescent Rose for you." Alphys then handed Ruby a slightly larger box. It had a few attachments, but in all it was still the same. They then headed down the hallway.

"Alphys... why did you lie to me about Mettaton?" Ruby asked.

Alphys sighed. "I wanted to feel like a good person. I wanted to help you, but I ended up making your journey more difficult."

They continued in silence until they reached the elevator. "Ruby wait!" Ruby turned around.

"What?"

"I... I lied about the barrier. A human soul alone can't pass. Only the combination of a monster soul and a human soul can pass the barrier. To pass, you must... kill Asgore."

Ruby's heart dropped. All this time, she had been saving monsters, but now she would have to kill one. "No..." Ruby said in pure shock.

"I... I'm sorry." Alphys then ran off.

"Alphys!" Ruby exclaimed. She sighed. She just needed time. She went in the elevator and went up.

When she got to the top, everything was grey. She walked out to see a whole city, all grey like stone. She went down the pathway to see a familiar house.

"This house... it's just like!" Ruby then sprinted through the door, but then stopped when she remembered that Toriel was on the other side of the Underground. This house was exactly the same, but now at the room corridor, the last room was closed off. "Toriel... This must be Asgore's house, but... why is it exactly the same?"

Ruby shook it off when she saw a chain with two locks keeping it up. "I'm betting there's some keys. Hope they're not too far."

As she turned, she saw a whole bunch of enemies, each from the ruins, Snowdin, Waterfall, Hotland, and the Core. She was about to draw Crescent Rose in defense, but stopped as they began talking.

"Long ago, a human fell down here. The king's son, Asriel, found the human. At first, he was frightened by the new creature, but soon found them to be a kind and non-hostile creature, so he took the human in. The king and queen took care of the human like they were their own. Things were starting to look bright in the underground." Ruby was confused at first, but then it continued. "Then, one day, the human became deadly ill. They did everything they could, but could not save the human. Their last wish was to be put back on the surface on a bed of flowers. So Asriel took the soul of the human and crossed the barrier."

"Amazing. One human soul can do so much!" Ruby mused.

But the story was not yet over. "Asriel carried the body of the human to a nearby village. The humans saw the child and misunderstood. They attacked Asriel. He had the power to wipe them out... but he never did. He placed down the body in a flower bed in the center of town and went back to the underground. Asriel had Aiken many blows and collapsed on a bed of flowers, turning to dust."

Ruby covered her mouth at that. Asriel, the prince of the underground, died from human hands. It was no wonder why monsters hated humanity. "Once again, the humans had taken everything from us. The king, Asgore, had decided he had had enough, so he declared war on the humans. Every human that would fall down here would die. This filled the underground with hope once again. However, the queen was disgusted by the king's actions and fled."

"One monster and human... did all this?" Ruby asked herself. Then she took this in. They needed seven souls to escape, but only had six. If she destroyed those souls, along with Asgore, it would fill the underground with more hate than ever. Especially against her. "But... if I give my soul to the monsters, they'll be free, but will most likely try to destroy humanity, and if it comes down to..."

Ruby didn't want to even think about what would happen if monsters sided with the White Fang. All hell would break loose. "There has to be a way to save monsters and not get me killed in the process." Ruby pondered. She shook her head. "I'll think about it later. Right now, I need to meet Asgore and see if he's willing to talk."

Ruby looked around the house to look for the keys. In the kitchen was one key, along with multiple recipes for pie. In the rooms, there was another key, along with a locket and a worn knife. Ruby didn't feel comfortable with the knife, but she put on the locket since it looked nice. She soon found the second key in the other room. She went up to the chains blocking the stairs and unlocked the two locks. Down it was a long pathway, leading to another view of the city. At the end of the corridor was an elevator, which Ruby assumed led to the entrance. She went in the next door to see a more colorful corridor with another star, which she touched. She went down the corridor until a familiar shaded figure blocked her path.

"You have come far, young Ruby Rose. But now, you will be judged. Every person you've met, every EXP you've earned. What's EXP? It's an acronym. It means Execution Points. Every time you kill, you gain EXP. Eventually, you gain LOVE? LOVE, too, is an acronym. It stands for Level of Violence. The more LOVE you get, the easier it is to distance yourself from others."

Then, Sans' face warmed up with the same smile that always made Ruby want to smile as well. "But, you never gained any LOVE. Instead, you got love. That makes sense, right?" Sans said.

Ruby laughed. "Yeah, I get ya."

"But, that doesn't mean you're completely innocent or naive. It means you kept a certain tenderness in your heart. But now, you're going to face one of the greatest challenges of your entire journey. Asgore will use everything he has to take your soul and free the monsters. But, with you, I have a feeling you'll convince him to let you go."

"Thanks Sans. But... I feel like I haven't done everything I can down here."

Sans walked up to Ruby. "You know, Alphys is a little down right now. Maybe, if you help her out, things will get better."

Ruby then remembered a question she had wanted to ask. "Sans, how did you know that I died to Undyne? What are you not telling me?"

"Well, I knew this would come up. There is much more to me than meets the eye. I see a lot of things. All the timelines and events that could happen. If you said this or that to someone. You befriending everyone. You killing everyone. You thanking the friends you have. You never forgiving them. And right now, you have a choice of finishing your journey one of two ways. Each depends on your own heart right now."

Ruby took this in. One choice can change the outcome of her journey. Is it letting Asgore kill her? Or is it...

"Is one of the choices going back to Alphys?"

Sans winked. "Maybe. Just know it's your decision that changes everything."

With that, Sans disappeared, leaving Ruby feeling more helpless than ever. She went up to the next area and went east instead of north. Down that long path she found seven coffins, one with her name on it, as well as empty. This left an uneasy feeling in her. She then went back up and went into the north room to see a new monster.

He had a dark purple cape and had prominent horns and goat ears, along with golden armor.

"Yes, just a second. I'm almost finished watering the flowers." The king said. He had a deep, but soft, voice, making it clear he would choose a more peaceful route if he could. He then placed a golden watering can down. "Alright, that's better." He then turned around to reveal a great deal of orange hair both on his head and face. "Howdy! How may I-" he cut himself off when he saw Ruby.

"Hi." Ruby said calmly.

"Hello. So you're the human I've heard about. ... I would ask if you would like a cup of tea, but... you know how it is."

"So then you're Asgore?" Ruby asked.

The king nodded. "I am Asgore. I will wait for you past here."

Asgore then walked off through a doorway. Ruby followed. "Human, if you have anything you would like to do before we fight, now would be a good time to do so. Past this door is the barrier, the very thing keeping all monsters down here. I would rather not fight you. You seem like such a nice young girl, but you know how it is."

"I understand. There is one last thing I would like to do." Ruby said.

Asgore nodded. "Very well. I shall wait for you in here. Return when you are ready."

Ruby nodded and went off. She had made up her mind. Alphys is the last thing to change her journey's end.

A/N

Hey guys, we're now up to date with everything! At least, I am. So yes! Ruby will be completing the true pacifist ending! I might add a few bonus chapters of the neutral ending, stuff like that, but for now, it's the true pacifist! I'm looking forward to writing the next chapter, but I'll be sure to keep it at a PG level. So no worries to those that aren't for those kinds of scenes, and sorry to those who like them. Anyway, that said, I am really looking forward to the continuation of this story. I will probably put some polls in the reviews, so be sure to look out for those. That said, put in your ideas of what I should do with this story. If your idea is good, I'll give you credit at the author notes. See you guys next chapter. Also, please send reviews and PM me for some ideas you want to suggest. That said, goodbye. Also, I'm not dead from glamour :)


	12. Chapter 12: Awkward Dates

Chapter 12: Awkward Dates

Ruby took the elevators back to the Core, and back to Hotland. But as she was going, she got a call from Undyne.

"Hey, Ruby. It's Undyne. I got a favor I need from you." She said. She then said in the background "Shut up, Papyrus, this was your idea." She then said. "I need you to deliver something for me."

"Alright. Just let me get Toby real quick. I left him back at the Core entrance." Ruby said. She called over Toby and the two went to the elevator, going back to the lab and riding the boat to Snowdin. There, they met Undyne and Papyrus. Toby went up and nuzzled his snout on Undyne's leg. Undyne then pet Toby a little, smiling. "So what's the favor you want me to do?" Ruby asked.

"Um... I need you to deliver this letter to Alphys." Undyne said, holding out a letter.

"Alright, but why me?" Ruby asked.

"Well, it's because Hotland sucks. I don't want to relive that experience again, so I'm sending you instead."

Ruby shrugged and took the envelope. She then went up to Papyrus, who was petting Toby. "You know why she won't go herself?" Ruby asked Papyrus.

"Well, she always writes letters, but she can never find the right words. Whenever she tries to deliver them herself, she always stops half way and goes back to edit. That's why she chose you. Because you have no standards." Papyrus joked.

"Haha, very funny." Ruby said. She then went off, but not before Undyne telling her to not open the envelope. Ruby was curious, but she didn't want to get on Undyne's bad side... again.

She went back to Hotland and slid the envelope under the door and gave it a quick knock.

"Oh no. Another one? Can I just slide it back out?" Alphys said inside. "No, I have to get out of this state. I'll read this one." There was a moment of silence, which a few murmurs until Alphys said "Wait, this handwriting. Could it be..."

The door then slid open to show Alphys a little more down than usual. "Hey, listen, if this is a joke..." Alphys said, but Ruby cut her off.

"Look, I know you wanted to be a heroine and you tried to kill me doing so, but I want to be your friend, and I want you to be my friend too." Ruby said.

Alphys's face then grew a little red. "Well, for the letter, I had no idea you wrote that way. And... with that kind of passion." Ruby was about to say something, but Alphys then said "You know what, okay! I'll do it! It's the least I can do! Let's go on a date!"

Ruby's face then turned bright red. 'I don't think now is the best time to tell her I'm not into girls.' Ruby thought. "Uh, Alphys, that's-" Ruby stopped herself. If she did this, maybe this would help Alphys. She sighed. 'Just this once.' Ruby thought. "Alright."

"Great! Let's start!"

DATING! START!

There was a moment of awkward silence. "Hold up! I'm still getting dressed!" Alphys said. She then came out with a doted dress. "Okay, I'm ready!"

DATING! START!

"Wait! We can't start the date yet!" Alphys exclaimed.

DATING... STOP?

"Um, I mean, there are certain variables that will effect the date. Fortunately, I've been stock piling gifts in preparation for a date." Alphys explained.

"Alright." Ruby said.

"First, I have this cream for your scales. Wait... scales..." Alphys paused for a second. "Uh, never mind that. How about this energy spear repair kit?" Alphys paused again. "Um, you probably won't need that. Um... How about some armor polish?" Alphys gave up. "Alright, forget the items. Let's start the date!"

DATING! START!

"Yeah, let's start this!" Alphys exclaimed.

"Yeah." Ruby half exclaimed. There was then an awkward moment of silence until Alphys broke the silence.

"So... do you like... anime?" Alphys asked.

"Yeah, anime is cool. I like it." Ruby said.

"Hey, me too." Alphys said. There was then another moment of silence. "So... want to go somewhere?"

"Yeah, it's a little too hot here." Ruby said.

"Alright, I know the perfect place!" Alphys exclaimed. The two then walked off to the Waterfall.

Soon, they were in the garbage dump. "Undyne and I always come here. We usually find some cool stuff here, like some anime, history books, that stuff."

"Well, it certainly is... interesting." Ruby said.

"Well, I'm glad we can do this together." Alphys said, making Ruby blush slightly. Then, they heard some rustling in the garbage. "Oh no. That's Undyne! I can't let her see me with you!"

"Uh, why?" Ruby asked.

"Not important! I need to hide!" Alphys then hopped into a trash can nearby. Undyne then came out from some trash.

"Hey, I figured it wouldn't be good if you delivered the letter. It might send some unwanted misunderstandings. Give it to me, I'll do it." Undyne said.

"Bad news, I already delivered it." Ruby said.

Undyne growled slightly. "Well, do you know where she is?"

Ruby knew she couldn't lie to Undyne, but wanted to protect Alphys. "She's around here somewhere. She ran off when she saw you for some reason." Ruby half lied.

"So she's somewhere around here? Alright, thanks Ruby." Undyne then dashed off.

Alphys then came out from the trash can. "Uh, well I guess it's obvious then, huh? I really wanted to go on a date with Undyne. I mean, not that you're not good looking."

Ruby blushed wildly. "Uh, sorry to break it to you, Alphys, but I'm not into girls."

Alphys sighed. "Figured as much. But I mean, Undyne is so much better than I am. She's so strong, confident, awesome. All I am is just a big fraud."

Ruby thought for a moment, then got an idea. "How about we practice? You know, role play." Ruby suggested.

"Role play? That actually sounds pretty fun. And it might help me be more confident. Alright, I'll give it a shot." Alphys said.

"Alright, how about this. You be Undyne, and I'll show you what you should say." Ruby said.

"Me? Undyne? ... Alright. I'll say what I think Undyne will say." Alphys said.

"Alright." Ruby then cleared her throat. "Hey Undyne, can we talk?"

Alphys cleared her throat. "Sure, I will pretend to be interested in what you'll have to say."

'Jeez, she's hard on herself.' Ruby thought. "Undyne, I've lied to you about a lot of things. I'm sorry."

"What?! You lied to me?! Alphys, you fraud! I will never be your friend! Never will you feel my passionate embrace!" Alphys shouted.

"What did you just say?!" Undyne said, a look of bewilderment on her face.

"Undyne! I-um..." Alphys stammered.

"Woah, what's with the dress? It's so cute! What's the occasion?" Undyne asked. She then looked from Ruby to Alphys. "Wait, are you two... dating?"

"Yes! Uh, I mean, no! I mean..." Alphys sighed. "I lied to you, Undyne." Alphys said.

"What? About what?" Undyne asked.

"About... well... everything. Those human history books, everything I said is true is actually wrong. Those history books are actually just anime!" Alphys then went on about everything else she lied about. Undyne then bent down and pet Alphys.

"Alphys..." Undyne said.

"Undyne, I..." Alphys said, but was cut off by Undyne lifting her up and throwing her into a trash can.

"Alphys, most of the things you said means nothing to me. I don't care if you watch anime. I don't care if you lied about everything. You're smart, and you're resourceful, so that's why I like you."

"Undyne, you mean it?" Alphys said.

"Yes. That's why I'm going to make sure you become strong!" Undyne said.

"You mean... you'll train me?" Alphys asked.

"Pft, what? No, I'm not." Undyne said. Papyrus then emerged from a pile of trash. "No, I'm going to get him to do it."

"Alright, people, let's get those hips shaking! 100 laps around the junkyard!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Undyne... I won't let you down." Alphys said.

"Ready? I'm starting the timer!" The two then ran off. Undyne's expression then changed to a surprised face. "Oh my God. She was joking right? Those books were real, right? ANIME IS REAL, RIGHT?"

"Yes! Anime is real!" Ruby exclaimed.

"I KNEW IT! GIANT SWORDS, FAIRY PRINCESSES, HERE I COME!" Undyne yelled. Then she calmed down. "Uh, thanks for looking out for Alphys. I think she's lightening up a little."

"No problem. But I think there's still work to do." Ruby said. She then went off, leaving Undyne to catch up with the others. Soon, she got a call from Papyrus.

"Hello, Ruby! We finished our training early! Very early. So I sent Alphys home. Very home. Would you please check up on her to see if she's alright?" Papyrus then hung up.

"Dang it, Papyrus, why didn't you watch after her?" Ruby said, using her semblance to rush off to the lab.

A/N

New chapter! More content for me to stress about! We're getting close to that fight! And for the end of Undertale! I'm really going to miss this story when it's over. But that's probably not going to happen for a while. Anyway, not going to drag this out, see you guys next chapter, and sorry for the short chapter. From now on, these might be some short chapters since I'm very bad at getting in details. That said, see ya!


	13. Chapter 13: Darker Secrets

Chapter 13: Darker Secrets

Ruby just entered the lab, and she knew something was off. "Alphys! Where are you?!" Ruby shouted. She then saw a piece of paper on the ground. She picked it up and read it.

'Ruby, I thank you for trying to make me feel better, but I won't feel any better if this continues. If I don't come back, just make sure everyone forgets about me.' The paper read.

"Crap! I need to get Alphys!" Ruby exclaimed. She then went in the door to see it was in fact an elevator. She quickly pressed the only lit up button and the elevator descended. There was then an alarm about the power run out. The elevator velocity then increased, making Ruby plummet down the elevator shaft.

"Damn!" Ruby cursed before the elevator crashed, making her black out. When she regained consciousness, it was nearly pitch black, only a faint green light illuminating the partly opened door. "What the Dust?" Ruby said. Through the door was an old lab, slightly molded and withered. On the walls were entry logs.

'Entry 1: it's time for me to begin the assignment Asgore gave me. I will find a way to break the barrier.' It said.

"She was researching something of that caliber?" Ruby said in amazement. "What went wrong?"

She went on to see another door with four locks on it, along with a food dispenser with popato chisps in it.

"Really? I thought they got rid of these things ages ago." Ruby said. She put in some g and got a bag of chisps. "Man, these take me back. And why does it feel like a dead aura strays around here?"

She tried her luck on the door, but no luck. "Hm... looks like four locks, but not normal keys. Maybe something else?" Ruby said to herself. She then went west to a hospital like area. There were medical beds along the walls, along with another log and some sinks at the end. The log said something about injecting patients with DETERMINATION.

"What? How do you make determination into a substance? Wait, are they using the human souls to generate artificial determination?" Ruby said. She then went over to the sinks to see they were all very dirty. "Hope the tap down here works." Ruby said, turning the handle on one of the sinks. Thankfully, water came out, washing away all the grime. Ruby did the same with the other two, but the third one didn't make water. Instead, it made a white substance which reformed into an amalgamate.

Ruby's soul flashed on her chest, engaging the amalgamate in battle. She then heard her scroll going whack and put it to her ear. She later realizes that they are using her scroll to communicate to her. They continuously say 'join the fun, be one of us.' over and over. "I'd rather not join." Ruby said into the scroll. 'Worth a shot.' They said, disappearing.

Ruby sighed in relief. "So that's what happened down here. Those things came. But how did they become... that?" Ruby then noticed a red shimmer in the sink. She picked it up to see it was a key of sorts. She picked it up and went down the doorway beside the sinks to see a key slot in the part of the wall that looked like Mettaton slightly. She looked at the key to see the hole matched the key. Ruby shrugged. "Worth a shot." She then put the key into the slot, the slot now glowing red. Ruby then went to the locked door to see one of the locks was now red. "Oh, I get it."

Ruby then went through the newly opened door to see a few more entries about the experiments going not to plan. Past that was a lot more hospital beds, each one gave Ruby a sense of someone, or something, always watching her. She hated that feeling.

"I don't like this. The air itself smells of death. No, worse than that. Agony." Ruby said to herself. "The poor things that suffered down here. What did Alphys do?"

She looked around the beds to see if she could find anything useful, and found another key. "Score!" Ruby cheered. She found another yellow star, which she touched. After a while of wandering around, she found a shower room with a tentacle thing in it. Ruby approached slowly and yanked the shower curtains only to see it was empty, aside from another key. The next area had a slightly disturbing skull, humungous at that. In the room to the north was a TV with some VSR tapes. Ruby put in one of the tapes and pressed play.

There was no video, just audio. But what she heard was enough for her to grasp.

"Honey, why do you have the camera?" A male voice asked.

"Never mind that, I want to get your reaction. Now, if I was a dog, what breed would I be?" A female voice asked.

"I don't know, honey. What breed would you be?" The male voice asked.

"I'd be a MOMeraisin." The female voice joked.

The male voice laughed a little. "You sure are exited to have this child. You know, if you keep this up, you might one day be a famous MOMedian."

"I'm going to bed now." The female voice said.

"Aw, come on. That was a good joke." The male voice argued.

"Yes, I know. I was messing with you. Good night, Gory."

"Good night, Tory."

The video ended, the tape ejecting. Ruby was in shock. "Asgore and Toriel... they were a couple once?" Ruby was trying to figure out what happened between them. "Maybe there will be an explanation on one of these."

She put in another tape, this one also having no video feed. "Okay, Chara, make that scary face." A child voice said. Ruby could hardly tell if it was a boy or a girl, but she didn't dwell into it.

"Ah, that was scary! Huh? Oops, I had the cap on. What? You won't do it again? Aw, come on."

The video ended and ejected the tape. Ruby then remembered the story all the monsters told her. About Asriel.

"That's right! Toriel left because of Asgore's act of war! And that voice... That must be Asriel!" Ruby exclaimed. She then watched the rest of the tapes, getting as much information as possible.

After watching all the tapes, she went on, touching the star in the path. She jumped when the star turned into an amalgamate, engaging her in battle. She looked at her options and flexed. Lemonbread was then quickly spared. Ruby then looked down the next room to see it was filled with fog, unable to see the other side.

"Maybe there's a ventilation system somewhere." Ruby said. She then went back and went to the other side of the corridor. Sure enough, there was a ventilation system. She flipped a switch at the end and the fans activated. Unfortunately, it gathered up some white particles in the area, forming a giant dog amalgamate. It blocked Ruby's only path, making it impossible to not fight.

Ruby assumed that the amalgamate will be just like the fight with Greater Dog, so she beckoned it. Amalgamate came towards her, flicking ectoplasm in her face. She wiped the ectoplasm off and pet the Amalgamate. It then sent homing bullets at her, which she dodged easily. She then got an idea and played fetch with the Amalgamate, using Crescent Rose as the stick. The Amalgamate brought back Crescent Rose and sat. She repeated this process a few times until the Amalgamate grew tired. Ruby then pet the Amalgamate a few times until it had a happy dog smile. She then spared it.

"I like dogs, but that was a little scaring. I don't think I'll be able to see Toby or Zwei the same way now." Ruby said. She then went into the area that was engulfed in fog to see it was now cleared. In it was a few fridges and another log or two. In one of the fridges, another Amalgamate appeared. This one seemed like a joke kind of guy, so Ruby told a few jokes to the Amalgamate. It seemed to enjoy the jokes and was spared.

"How many of these things are there? They kind of resemble other monsters, but mutated and melded into each other. Wait, there was an entry that said that they melted into each other after being injected with determination. Is it that monsters can't handle the power of human determination? Or was it their determination to..." Ruby stopped that thought. It was way to morbid to think about, it would probably break her.

She picked up the blue key that was dropped. "Alright! I got all the keys. Now I just need to find the slots." Ruby cheered. She went into the passage at the end of the hallway to see a key slot like the one back at the beginning. She tried it with every key until the green key fit in it, illuminating the lock. She then went on back to the TV room to put in the next key, it illuminating yellow.

As she found the last area for the lock, another Amalgamate came from a mirror, attacking her with butterflies. She wished she could make this stuff up. She then used Crescent Rose to do something mysterious, making the Amalgamate able to be spared. She then went in and put in the last key, the door opening, she rushed back to the door, but not before grabbing another bag of chisps. Inside was an elevator and two inactive logs. Past there was a generator room with a switch. "This must be the main breaker." Ruby assumed. She pulled the switch,many sure enough, the power returned. She turned around to see three Amalgamates approaching her. She braced herself for a living hell when Alphys came in.

"Wait! Don't eat her! She's bad for your diet! I got some food out here!" Alphys exclaimed. The Amalgamates rushed out for the food. "Sorry about that. I sometimes forget to feed them."

"So are they why you said you might not come back? Or was it..." Ruby asked.

"Oh, no. It wasn't them I was afraid of. I was afraid I might never come back up from fear. All the things I did, the poor lives I ruined, everything I did."

"Hey, don't dwell on the past. You were trying to save lives, and you never meant it out of bad intentions, so you're not evil." Ruby cheered.

Alphys looked surprised. "Ruby... thank you. But what should I do now?"

"Let the Amalgamates go free. Let them be with their families again. Trust me, you'll feel better about it one way or another. You meant to free everyone, not for all this to happen, but you kept it from everyone."

"You're right, Ruby. I have to bring the Amalgamates back to their families. It's for the best." Alphys then turned to the Amalgamates and said "Come on, guys. Time for you to go back home." They then walked off. Ruby followed and realized that the logs were now active.

'I got an idea. What if a plant gained the will to go on? I won't tell Asgore. I want it to be a surprise. The first golden flower in the patch.'

'The flower is gone.'

Ruby's eyes widened. "Alphys... made Flowey?" Ruby said in disbelief. She went in the elevator and got a call. She picked up her scroll, expecting Papyrus. "Hello?"

The response sent shivers up her spine.

"Good work, little rose. Everything is now in place." The voice said.

Before Ruby could respond, the elevator sky rocketed, making Ruby fall from the velocity, the lights going red. Soon, she was back at the city, the elevator blocked by huge spiked vines. "So this is it, huh? Hope Sans was right." Ruby said, going into the elevator shortcut to the throne room.

A/N

Here we are! It's been a long 13 chapters, but now we're about to end the Undertale section of this fanfic! Man, I'm so pumped for this! I'm shaking a little? Am I shaking? Tell me if I'm shaking. Oh wait, you can't see me. Well, just imagine me shaking! Woo! Hype! *clears throat* Anyway, I would like to thank you all for reading and staying with me through this fanfic. It's been a long road. But don't worry! This fanfic is far from over. Thanks to sharpstrike's PM, I have decided to continue this fanfic! I have been thinking this over for a long time and I have come down to the answer being yes! The world of Remnant will change with the new monsters inhabiting it! But now is the time for some dragon ball z conclusions. Will the world see the monsters as Ruby does? Or will they bring about war? Will Ruby have to side with one? Stay tuned and see! Also, sorry for the lack of a cover, my friend is still working on it. So people, PM me what you think and send some ideas! I want you guys to participate in this! We're all a family here, so be nice. So yes, send ideas in the reviews or PM me some ideas! I love to hear what you guys have to say! That said, see ya in the final chapter taking place in the Underground!


	14. Chapter 14: Hopes and Dreams(UT FINALE)

Chapter 14: Hopes and Dreams (Undertale FINALE)

Ruby went to where Asgore told her to go when she was ready, seeing an infinite hallway of white. The only thing significant was Asgore.

"Oh? Back so soon? So, are you ready?" Asgore asked.

Ruby inhaled. "Yes. I am ready."

Asgore sighed. "Very well then."

He then turned to face Ruby, seven containers coming from the floor, six having hearts like Ruby's soul, but they were all in a spectrum. Her own soul then flashed on her chest.

'A strange light fills the room. Twilight is gleaming through the barrier. It seems your journey is finally at an end. You're filled with... DETERMINATION!'

"Human, it was nice to meet you. Goodbye." Asgore said with a grim face. He was about to pull something out when a ball of fire sent him flying. Out from the area came Toriel.

"What a miserable creature, about to kill such a poor, innocent youth. Fear not, my child. It is I, Toriel, your guardian and caretaker. At first, I let you go because I thought it was right. But then that would leave you with a horrible fate. To leave the underground, you' shave to take the life of another monster. You'd have to kill Asgore. I decided that I could not allow that. So for now, let us postpone this battle." Toriel said.

Asgore was recovering from the damage he had. "Tori! You came back!" Asgore said happily.

"Do not Tori me, Dreemurr. You pathetic whelp. If you wanted to free everyone peacefully, you could have done it when you had one soul, cross the barrier, and gotten six souls peacefully. But instead, you stayed down here, meekly hoping another human never comes down here." Toriel snarled.

"You're right, Tori. I am a miserable creature." Asgore said. "But... do you think we can at least be friends?"

Toriel sighed. "No, Asgore." Asgore then had a sad face.

Undyne then came in, looking ready for a fight to end. "NYAH! Asgore, Ruby, don't fight! If you guys fight, then I'll! I'll!" Undyne then looked up to see Toriel.

"Oh, are you a friend of Ruby? It is nice to meet you! I am Toriel." Toriel greeted.

"Uh, nice to meet you, too." Undyne then came up to Asgore. "Hey, is that your ex? Man, that's a real bummer."

Alphys then was next to show up. "Hey guys, no one fight, okay?"

"Are you another friend of Ruby? Hello, I am Toriel."

"Uh, hello, your majesty." Alphys said. She then whispered to Ruby "there's two of them?!"

Ruby laughed. "Yup, queen and King." Ruby said.

Papyrus was then next to appear. "Asgore! Human! Don't fight! If you fight, then I'll! Be forced! To ask Undyne for help!"

"Are you another friend? Hello!" Toriel greeted.

"Uh, hello, your majesty!" Papyrus greeted. "Pst, hey, did Asgore shave? And clone himself?"

Sans then came in with Toby. "Hey, kid. You left your dog with us."

"Oops, sorry!" Ruby apologized. "Probably for the best though."

"Yup, that must have been some serious stuff." Sans said.

"That voice!" Toriel exclaimed. "Hello! I think we may... know each other?"

"Oh yeah. I recognize your voice." Sans said.

"I am Toriel. It's so nice to finally meet you."

"Name's Sans, and... same."

"Oh, wait! Then... this must be your brother, Papyrus! It's so nice to meet you."

"Wowie! I can't believe Asgore's clone knows who I am! This is the best day of my life!" Papyrus cheered.

"Hey Papyrus, what does a skeleton tile his roof with?" Toriel asked.

"Hmm... snow proof roof tiles?" Papyrus asked.

"No, silly. A skeleton tiles his roof with SHINgles." Toriel joked.

"I CHANGED MY MIND! THIS IS THE WORST DAY OF MY LIFE!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"There, there, Asgore. There's plenty of fish in the sea." Undyne told Asgore.

"Yeah, what she said! Sometimes you just gotta quit going for the big furry boss monsters and... get to know a really cute fish." Alphys paused. "It's an analogy."

"Well, I think it's a good analogy." Undyne said.

Mettaton then entered, saying "OH MY GOD! Will you two just smooch already? The audience is dying for some romantic action!"

"Hey, shut up! Man, the nerve of that guy, right Alphys? Alphys?" Undyne asked.

"No, he's right! Let's do it!" Alphys said.

Undyne looked a little struck. "Well, I guess, if you insist, then! Don't hold anything back!"

The two were about to kiss when Toriel interrupted. "Wait! Not in front of Ruby!"

"Oh, sorry. Hehe. Got a little carried away there." Alphys said, blushing.

Everyone then gathered up in front of Ruby. "Hehe, well my child, it seems you will have to stay here for a while. With the new friends you have, we have much to talk about."

Alphys then looked over at Papyrus. "Hey, Papyrus, you called us all over here, right? Well, aside from her. Anyway, if I got here first, how did you know to call everyone?"

"Let's just say... a tiny flower helped me." Papyrus said.

Ruby and Alphys both exchanged nervous looks. "A tiny... flower?" They both asked.

Before Ruby could react, everyone was tangled in vines. Ruby reached for Crescent Rose, but was stopped when vines tangled around her legs and arms, making her immobile. Then, a painfully familiar flower popped out.

"You IDIOTS. While you guys were having your little pow wow, I took the human souls! And now, not only are those under my power, but all your friends' souls are going to be mine too! Heahahahaha! And you want to know what the best part is? It's all YOUR fault! It's all because you made them love you! Without that, they wouldn't have come here!" Flowey laughed.

"So why are you still doing this?" Ruby asked.

"Don't you get it? This is all just a game. If you leave the underground satisfied, you'll 'win' the game. And what would I do then? But this game of ours WON'T end! I'll hold victory right in front of you, just within your reach, and tear it away before you can grasp it!" Flowey laughed.

"You sadistic little flower!" Ruby yelled.

"Hehe. Listen, I'll make you a deal. If you defeat me, I'll destroy the barrier. I'll give you your 'happy ending'. But that WON'T happen! I'll keep you here forever!"

Around Ruby appeared some white bullets. "Even if it means killing you a million times!" The bullets then clashed on her soul, eating away at her aura more and more. When she was about to die, fire erupted, incinerating the bullets around her. "What?!"

"Do not be afraid, my child." Toriel managed. "For you have the strength to defeat him. You just need to hang in there."

Two walls of bullets came at Ruby, but was blocked by a bone and spear. "She's right! Just do what I would do! Believe in you!" Papyrus said.

"Hey, if you can get past me, you can do anything!" Undyne said. "So don't worry! We're with you all the way!"

"Huh? You haven't beaten this guy yet? Come on, this little freak's got nothin on you." Sans said.

Flowey sent another two walls of bullets at Ruby, which was blocked by electricity and some fire. "Uh, technically it's impossible for you to beat him. But somehow, I believe in you!" Alphys cheered.

"Human, for the sake of all humanity and monsters, you have to stay determined!" Asgore said.

Then, a bunch of monsters came out, cheering on Ruby. Each cheer made Ruby feel stronger, her aura replenishing more and more,

"Ugh! No! Impossible! I can't believe it! You! YOU!" Flowey raged. Then he wore his sadistic evil face. "I can't believe you're all so STUPID! All of your souls are MINE!" Flowey laughed, a white light engulfing everything.

When the light cleared, the only thing Ruby could see was a child. He had goat ears and little goat horns like Toriel and Asgore. He had a green shirt with yellow stripes and black pants. "Finally." The child said. "I was so tired of being a flower."

Ruby's eyes widened. She recognized the voice. It was the same voice as from the recordings in the lab.

The child turned and opened his eyes to reveal cheerful green eyes. "Howdy! Chara? Are you there? It's me! Your best friend!"

He then changed form, becoming more adult like with the same garments as Toriel, but different. It was slightly darker with a cape on the back. "Asriel Dreemurr." Ruby said.

The fight began, Asriel sending a few fireballs at Ruby. She thought this would be an easy fight, but soon the surroundings changed, becoming an infinite border of changing colors, as well as Asriel emitting colored paths of himself wherever he moved. This was the real final battle.

Ruby pulled out Crescent Rose and used it to propel herself through the star attacks Asriel threw. "You know? I don't care about destroying this world anymore. After I defeat you and gain total control of the timeline, I just want to reset everything. All your progress, everyone's memories. I'll bring them all back to zero! Then, we can do everything all over again!" Asriel laughed.

Asriel then sent giant stars at Ruby, each one exploding into smaller stars on impact. After that, Asriel drew a large box thing, firing rows of bullets at Ruby. Once the ammo was depleted, it fired a blast of rainbow lasers at Ruby. He threw the Chaos Breaker away and pulled out two swords, swinging side to side, which Ruby parried away. Once he swung a few times, he charged up and clashed his swords together, creating sparks that flew at Ruby.

"And you know what the best part of it is? You'll do it! Because you want a happy ending. Because you care about your friends. Haha, because you never give up! And you'll keep doing this over and over! Man, isn't that golden? I know what you have to lose. Your friends on the surface, your whole team, everyone who's ever cared about you! Don't worry, after this, they won't remember who you are!" Asriel laughed.

"No! I won't let that happen!" Ruby yelled. Asriel then sent bolts of lightning at Ruby, who was able to dodge through most of them, but got struck by a few. She then hoped, remembering why she was here. She then held on to that dream of coming back. She felt the space in her pockets grow smaller. She looked in to find a last dream. As well, her aura seemed more effective now.

Asriel attacked, summoning Chaos Burster, firing volley after volley, bullet after bullet. Then, when it fired the laser, stars erupted from the gun, making Ruby's work a lot harder, getting hit a few times. "Now, enough messing around! Time to purge this timeline!" Asriel shouted, letting out a mad laugh. The entire area grew dark, a skull the only thing Ruby could see. It then started inhaling, cubes being pulled in. Ruby used all her strength to survive it, only having a sliver of aura left over.

"Haha, still? Wow, you really are something special, aren't you? But I've only been using a fraction of my real power!" Asriel laughed. "Come on! Let's see what good your determination is against THIS!" Asriel exclaimed, morphing under a blinding light.

The next scene would forever remain in Ruby's mind, possibly give her nightmares for weeks. Asriel's form changed to a demon-like form. His teeth were now sharp and his horns were in a spiral. His arms were now levitating near his sockets, as well as his lower half not having any legs, but a heart-like cylinder making him levitate. He also had multi colored wings, changing colors from time to time. "Uahaha! Behold, my true power!"

Ruby could feel the entire world crumbling around her, the power so intense. She tried to reach for Crescent Rose, but her body refused to move. She struggled to move, gritting her teeth, but nothing happened. Asriel sent plasma balls at her, hitting her soul directly, cracking it in two.

Ruby almost accepted her fate, but something held her back. As her vision blurred, she saw the horrified faces of her friends. Not just her monster friends, but also Yang, Weiss, Blake, Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren, Nora, Ozpin, everyone. They all looked horrified. Asriel truly was ending the world with his power. Ruby then looked back at her shattered soul to see it was reforming. It refused to die. She refused to die.

"I won't die. Not here. Not now!" Ruby exclaimed. "I must stay determined!"

Ruby's soul reformed, better than ever, full of energy. However, Asriel's power still immobilized her, but her soul could move. She maneuvered it through each plasma blast, determination coursing through her veins and her heart. She had never looked more serious in her life.

"Asriel, you mess with myself, that's one thing. Mess with my friends, that's crossing the line!" Ruby yelled.

Asriel laughed. "I can feel it. Every time you die, your friends forget you a little more! You will die here, in a world where no one remembers you!"

Ruby struggled to move. Nothing happened. She tried to reach her SAVE. Nothing happened. She tried to reach it again. Nothing happened. Seems like saving really is impossible. But when all hope seemed lost, a new symbol appeared in front of her. It was rainbow, shining, and with the words SAVE on it. She reached out and touched it. She was able to then SAVE her friends.

"Papyrus! Sans! Please hear me!" Ruby shouted. Inside of Asriel, something was resonating. Ruby was enveloped in light and soon saw Papyrus and Sans, but their faces blurred.

"I must capture a human." Papyrus said.

"Just give up. I already did." Sans said.

"No. No, this isn't you guys! Snap out of it! Papyrus, remember that date we had? When you never loved me back as much, but I always loved you? Please remember! Something! Anything!" Ruby cried.

Papyrus was fazed, but soon regained consciousness. Sans, too, regained consciousness.

"No, wait! You're my friend! I could never capture you!" Papyrus exclaimed, the blur disappearing.

"Nah, I'm rooting for ya, kid." Sans said, his smile as nice as ever.

Ruby was then put back at Asriel. The SAVE icon hovered in front of her, which she touched and called out "Toriel! Asgore! Please!"

She was again enveloped in light, appearing in front of Toriel and Asgore.

"This is for your own good." Toriel said.

"Forgive me for this." Asgore said.

They then sent fire balls at Ruby. Ruby managed to get through the attack. "Toriel, remember that pie you made me? How you wanted me to stay with you forever? I promise you I'll see you again!" Ruby cried out. The blur faded from their faces and their smiles filled Ruby with a warm feeling.

"For the sake of monsters and humans..." Toriel said.

"...You have to stay determined!" Asgore finished.

The area faded to show Undyne, face blurred like the others. "All humans must die!" Undyne exclaimed, lashing out at Ruby. Ruby blocked every strike with Crescent Rose in defense mode, making the blade less sharp, but more durable.

"Undyne, please! I am not like other humans! Remember? You taught me how to cook once! We hung out! Undyne, please remember!" Ruby exclaimed.

The blur faded from Undyne's face, her wide smile warming Ruby's heart. "Well, some humans are okay, I guess." She said.

The area faded to Alphys, face blurred like the others. "You don't like me, don't you? I have to keep lying." She said, little Mettatons flying at her.

"No, that's not true! You're one of my greatest friends! You're a genius! You fixed Crescent Rose!" Ruby cried out.

The blur then faded from Alphys's face, her smile also warming Ruby's heart. "No, that's not true! My friends like me! And I like you too!" Alphys exclaimed.

The area then faded back to Asriel, the SAVE symbol still hovering. There was still someone needing to be saved. But who? Ruby's mind then clicked and she called out "Asriel! I know you're in there somewhere!"

"Huh? What are you doing?" Asriel asked.

A new vision crossed Ruby's mind. It was a story. A human on the ground, and a goat child finding them. They took them home, to two goat adults. Ruby then called out to Asriel again.

"What... what is this feeling? What are you doing? No! No, I don't need anyone!" Asriel yelled, sending plasma blasts at Ruby, a few hitting her.

"Asriel, I know this isn't you! I know you are a kind and caring person!" Ruby cried out.

"No, stay away from me! I'll tear you apart!" Asriel shouted, sending fewer plasma balls at Ruby.

"Asriel, you are nice! You care about humanity. You wouldn't hurt anyone! I know that!"

Asriel looked down. "Chara... Do you know why I'm doing this? It's because I want to keep you around. No, it's not just that. I care about you. I care about you more than anyone else. I'm not ready to lose someone like you again." Asriel said.

"Asriel.." Ruby said.

"So please, stop doing this, N!" Asriel cried, blasting Ruby with a beam of pure energy. Ruby would have been vaporized if her aura wasn't there. As she grew weak, her determination let her hang on, more and more damage taking. "Stop! Stop this! Please stop this!"

Soon, the beam ceased. Ruby's body was smoldering, patches of burns around her body and smoke coming off her. "Asriel... please stop."

"Chara... I'm so alone. Chara... I... I... I..."

Light engulfed the two, Asriel turning back into a kid. "I'm sorry." Asriel said, crying. He wiped the tears off his face and looked up at Ruby. "I always was a crybaby, wasn't I Chara?" Asriel said, then looked down. "I know. You're not actually Chara, are you? What... what is your name?" Asriel asked.

"My name is Ruby Rose." Ruby said.

"Ruby. That's... a nice name. Ruby, I can't keep up this form. I have to let the souls go. But first, I have to keep my promise. It's time for monsters to go free." Asriel said, starting to levitate. Souls then poured out of Asriel, millions of white monster souls spiraling around him. The whiteness above them then shattered, the barrier being destroyed. Asriel then fell, Ruby rushing in to catch him.

"I got ya." Ruby said, lifting up Asriel.

"Thanks, Ruby. Look, you should just forget about me. I'll turn back into a flower soon. I'll stop being able to feel anything. So, just forget about me." Asriel said.

"Well, I want to help. So let me." Ruby said, hugging Asriel to comfort him. Asriel returned the hug, crying into Ruby's shoulder. Ruby patted Asriel's back in an attempt to comfort him a little more.

"Ha... ha... I don't want to let go." Asriel cried. They soon broke the hug and Asriel walked off. Before going too far, he turned back to look at Ruby. "Hey, by the way, look out for mom and dad for me, okay?"

"Sure thing, Asriel." Ruby assured.

Asriel nodded and walked off, leaving Ruby to be enveloped in white light.

"Ruby, please wake up!" A faint voice called out.

"Ruby, don't give up now! You have to stay determined!" Another faint voice called out.

Ruby opened her eyes to see everyone standing around her, tears in all their eyes. She started to get up, but stopped as her right arm shot up pain. "Augh!" Ruby cried out.

"Don't stress yourself, child. You sustained serious injuries from... well, I'm not sure. To be honest, we do not remember much." Toriel said.

"Yeah, tell us next time you decide to take a nap!" Undyne joked.

"Yeah, you had Papyrus crying like a baby." Sans said.

"What?! I didn't cry! I don't cry! I just... caught something in my eye." Papyrus defended.

"What did you catch?" Sans asked.

"Tears!" Papyrus said.

Ruby chuckled a little. "Hey, what happened anyway?" Ruby asked.

"We are not sure ourselves. We saw a flower, then everything went white. Next thing we knew, the barrier was destroyed." Toriel said.

"So... He actually did it." Ruby said. Everyone exchanged confused looks.

"Child, what do you mean 'he did it?'" Toriel asked.

"Oh, it's-" Ruby stopped. If she mentioned Asriel to Toriel, she would most likely search the whole Underground for him. "It's nothing." Ruby lied. She knew Toriel wanted to see Asriel, but she didn't want her to be heartbroken.

Toriel didn't argue. "Here, let me see your arm." Toriel said. Ruby lifted her right arm as Toriel examined it. "Oh my. There are some broken bones in here. We will have to get you some medical care soon." Toriel said worried.

"Monster food can't heal it?" Ruby asked.

"I'm afraid monster food can only ease the pain. This will require some medical services. Here, let me wrap it up." Toriel then pulled out some cloth and put it around Ruby's neck and arm, making an arm cradle.

"Thanks. I could use some help getting up, though." Ruby said, taking Papyrus's hand as he pulled her up. "Thanks."

"No problem. I'm so exited to go to the surface! The cool wind on my bones, the sun gleaming on my body, shimmering my bones. One can only dream. But now, it's a reality!" Papyrus cheered.

"Calm down, buddy. The humans don't know we are one with peace yet, so we got to plan that out." Undyne said.

"Yes, but if there is war, it will be a beautiful place we will die at least." Papyrus said.

"You're an optimist, I'll give you that, Papyrus." Ruby said.

"Well, there's a whole new world waiting for us all. Should we go see it?" Asgore said.

"Yes, indeed. Let us go see the surface." Toriel said. The group then went through the passage to the surface, seeing the Emerald Forest gleam in the sunset. In the distance, there was Beacon, Ozpin's tower glinting in the sunlight.

"Oh my. It's... beautiful." Asgore said.

"Ruby, you live with this? It's so nice! The air is so fresh, the sunlight is so warm!" Undyne said.

"Yeah, I guess I've never took the time to feel how good the air and sun are until now." Ruby said.

"Sans, what's that giant yellow circle in the sky?" Papyrus asked.

"We call that the sun, my friend." Sans said.

"Wowie! I'm finally meeting the sun!" Papyrus cheered.

"Wow, it's way better than on TV. Way better! I never thought it would be this amazing!" Alphys said.

"I could stare at this for hours." Asgore said.

"Yes, but what will we do now?" Toriel asked.

"Oh, right. Everyone, this is the beginning of a bright future for us. A future where monsters and humans will live in peace. Ruby, may I ask something of you?" Asgore said.

"Yes?" Ruby asked.

"Would you be our ambassador? We need a human to show that monsters are caring beings." Asgore said.

"Of course! I will do anything to bring peace to Remnant." Ruby cheered.

"Yeah! Ruby will be the best ambassador! And I, the great Papyrus, will be the best mascot! I'll go make a good first impression!" Papyrus cheered, running off.

"Well, someone ought to go get him. See ya." Sans said, walking off in the wrong direction.

"Ugh, why must I do everything? Papyrus, wait!" Undyne said, running off for Papyrus.

"Hey, Undyne! Wait up!" Alphys called out, running towards them.

The other three stood at the cliff edge in silence. Asgore then turned to Toriel. "Um, should I follow?" Asgore asked, Toriel shooting a stern glare at him. "Well, gotta go." Asgore said, sprinting off.

Toriel looked over to the path to the Emerald Forest. "Thing sure are shaping up. What about you, Ruby? You said you have a team, did you not? I assume I will have to adjust to life here."

Ruby giggled. "Trust me, you'll need a lot of adjusting here."

Toriel giggled as well. "I hope I will be able to follow up with you, my child. Things are certainly looking up to us. Now, come along. The others are waiting for us."

Toriel took Ruby's unharmed hand and walked off.

A/N

Woohoo! End of the Undertale segment! This certainly has been a journey! I will be posting the RWBY continuation chapters soon, so stay tuned! This story is long from over! It's just the beginning, as Asgore said. Anyway, hope you enjoyed. PM me your ideas, I might even take some OCs and put them in as I see fit. Also, I apologize in advance if I get details wrong. That said, get ready for the next chapter of Rose of the Underground!


	15. Chapter 15: One Step Closer

Chapter 15: One Step Closer

"Young Ruby Rose, a cute, yet powerful, girl. She wielded one of the most powerful weapons ever created, Crescent Rose. Her dream was to become a huntress and save the innocent from danger like the heroes in the fairy tales." Ozpin sighed. "One week ago, she was sent on a lone mission to Mt. Ebott to deal with a newly detected Grimm infestation. On the day she was dispatched, a few hours later, her signal went dead. We suspected her scroll had gotten smashed and dispatched a search party. Unfortunately, her path went... obscure. Now, we have no choice but to announce her as 'presumed dead.'" Ozpin said grimly.

The whole school was at the funeral, at the cliff where Ruby's mother, Summer Rose, was buried. Ozpin figured Ruby would want to be buried next to her. Yang was trying not to break down and cause a scene, her teammates comforting her the best they could.

As Ozpin was finishing, a patrol came back, panting. "Professor! Emergency! The barrier surrounding Mt. Ebott has shattered!" Port gasped.

"What?!" Ozpin exclaimed.

"We have reports of thousands of monsters pouring out of the mountain side! But..." Port paused. "It- it-"

"What is it?" Ozpin said.

"It's... Ruby. She's with them. She's alive." Port said.

"What?!" The whole crowd exclaimed.

"She's with the monsters. Whether she's captive or with them by Will, we don't know, but her only injury seems to be a broken arm. Nothing more." Port said.

"Where is she?" Ozpin asked.

"In the front with six others. Two skeletons, one... fish lady, another monster I've never seen before, and two goat monsters. Wait... they... look to be helping Ruby. Maybe they're friendly." Port said.

"Only one way to find out. Everyone, do not, I repeat, do NOT attack unless they strike first." Ozpin ordered.

Everyone nodded and went off. A few minutes later, the two crowds of monsters and hunters were face to face. "Humans, we come with peaceful intentions." Asgore said.

"Then why do you bring an army of monsters tailing behind you?" Ozpin asked.

"They are no army. Half of these monsters aren't even trained to fight. This is the population of the underground, no legion or army." Asgore said.

"I see. And why, may I ask, do you have one of my students held hostage?" Ozpin asked.

"I am not a hostage. I am the one who... helped free the monsters from the underground. But they are not hostile! They don't have to be fought with weapons, but rather words." Ruby said.

"I see. Then I take it when your signal went dead, you had fallen into the mountain?" Ozpin said.

"That is correct. The barrier disconnected my signal to the outside world, leaving me to navigate through the underground to return. As well, many of these monsters helped me escape. However, that doesn't mean they immediately saw me as... friendly. But through a lot of convincing, I got them to realize that humans aren't all hostile, just afraid of what they might do." Ruby explained.

Ozpin took this in. He chuckled, silently thanking it was Ruby of all people who had been sent out. If it were anyone else, this wouldn't be happening. "Ruby Rose, it seems your kind heart has rewarded many people. I trust what you say, and am willing to negotiate peace between monsters and humans. Also, I believe there is a team who is happy to see you again." Ozpin smiled, stepping back to see Yang, face practically drenched in tears of joy.

"RUBY!" Yang exclaimed, rushing to her sister.

"Yang! Wait, not to-" Ruby said, but her warning was cut off by Yang bear hugging Ruby. "Ow! Ow! Yang, got an injured arm here!" Ruby said.

"Oops." Yang said, loosening her grip on Ruby.

"Better." Ruby said, wrapping her good arm around Yang, letting out a tear of happiness. Ruby looked back to see her friends in a state of slight confusion. "Oh, I should probably explain. Everyone, this is Yang, my big sister. Yang, this is Asgore, Toriel, Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, and Alphys, my monster friends." Ruby said, pointing to each monster.

"I see. So this is the sister you mentioned before. It is nice to finally meet you." Toriel said.

"Thanks. Also, thanks for looking out for my little sis." Yang said.

"Now then, about the peace arrangements." Asgore said.

"Ah, yes. We will see to that tomorrow. For now, we will allow you all to adjust to Remnant." Ozpin said.

"Very well. Thank you, sir." Asgore said.

"Please. Just call me Ozpin." Ozpin said in a friendly tone.

As they were led to Vale, they took Ruby to a hospital to get her arm looked at.

"I have good news and better news. The good news is that her arm isn't injured to the point where we have to amputate her, so we gave her a case. The better news is the food she ate. Somehow, it seems to spread nutrition through her bloodstream, but the nutrient is unlike anything I've ever seen. It has healing properties. Is this what monster made food can do?" The doctor said.

"Incredible. Monster food actually does have healing properties. How long will it take for her to heal up?" Toriel said.

"Minus the food, it would take six months. But with daily consumption of this, it will take less than a week for it to heal fully. At least, so the analysis says." The doctor said.

Yang let out a sigh of relief. "At least she won't be out for too long." Yang said.

"Indeed. But she is not to participate in any Hunter activities until she is fully healed, and one day afterwards." The doctor said.

"Alright. She will be safe with us." Toriel said. "I will take some of the meetings off to make sure she is well."

"Very well." The doctor said.

A few minutes later, Ruby came out with a cast on her broken arm. "Does it hurt?" Yang asked.

"A little. I'll be fine, though." Ruby said.

"At least it'll only be a week. Toriel said she'll take some meets off to tend to you." Yang said.

"Yes. I would like to see you in good shape soon. Your kind spirit is very much needed here." Toriel said.

"Thanks, Toriel." Ruby smiled.

As they walked to the port to get on a bullhead to Beacon, they saw Papyrus and Sans walking Toby. They soon looked over and saw the three. "Hey kiddo. How's the arm holding?" Sans said.

"It hurts a little, but it's fine otherwise." Ruby said.

"That's good. I was kinda worried you would be a lot worse off." Sans said.

"Hey, nice dog." Yang said.

"Really, it's Ruby's, but we did her a fav and walked him for her." Sans said.

"Yeah, because that's what friends are for!" Papyrus said.

"Ruby, you never told me you got a new pet! What's his name?" Yang said.

"I called him Toby. It just sounded right." Ruby said.

The five then walked around town, seeing that within a few hours humans and monsters were already starting to connect. Some washuas made the streets cleaner than they had ever been, which was a plus. A few Snow Drakes were at a bar, making jokes for the patrons. There was even a Kiora taking a job as a messenger.

Kiora was a monster Ruby had never seen, mainly due to their habit of not being around other monsters. They tend to stay out of sight, but sometimes come out when they get lonely. Ruby had heard they prefer cold climates, such as Snowdin, and are happy to take messages, making them useful for carrying letters to people in far off areas. They are green with the head of an alpaca, a dog like nose, lazy yellow eyes, the fur covering the right side of their face due to it spiking out, spider like arms, light black goat feet and horns, and a spiked lizard tail with a bit of fluff on the end.

Ruby also noticed that after it finishes a sentence, it lets out a random noise, which could make Vale a lot more noisy. Either way, it made Ruby happy to know monsters were starting to fit in around Vale. She even saw a construction site nearby with Muffet standing there, a content smile on her face.

"Looks like Muffet is building something over there." Ruby said.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. We asked her about that earlier. She said she's making a spider cafe with all the money she got from the bake sale." Sans said.

"Spider cafe? Sounds... creepy." Yang said.

"Eh, it's not that bad. Their food is actually pretty good, contrary to popular belief." Sans said.

Yang shrugged and the group went on, seeing a few posters about Mettaton's show in a few weeks. After that was a few other monsters, getting jobs around town. Even the librarian from Snowdin took up a job at a book store.

They soon got on a bullhead and went off to Beacon. During the ride, Sans and Yang exchanged the most cringing puns, later Toriel joining in the pun exchange. Ruby was trying to not lose any brain cells while Papyrus tried to knock himself out to prevent sitting through this any further. Once they had arrived, Ruby and Yang went to their dorm while Papyrus, Sans and Toriel, along with Toby, went to the dorm they were given for the time until they found a house of their own. At least, that's what Ozpin had said.

"Good lord Sans, you three could kill a whole army with those puns." Papyrus groaned.

"What? I was on a roll. Besides, she does have some good puns." Sans said.

"Indeed. Yang certainly does know some good ones." Toriel said.

"More like bad ones." Papyrus said.

"Come on. You were smiling the whole ride." Sans said.

"I was and I hated it." Papyrus said.

As they entered, they saw Asgore, Undyne and Alphys talking. "What happens if war breaks out again?" Undyne said.

"Should that happen, we must try to negotiate instead of fight. But if it comes down to it..." Asgore said.

"B-but it's fine! Ruby will defend us, right? She knows we are peaceful! She would never abandon us!" Alphys said.

"Yes, but she would be killed as a traitor if she sided with us. Sure, she would side with us due to her nature, but her strength couldn't stop a whole army of hunters. Even with her determination, she would be killed without hesitation." Undyne said.

"Hey guys. What you talking about?" Sans said.

"Oh, hey. Didn't see you. We were just talking about... things. Oh, and Ozpin gave us this note while you guys were out." Undyne said, handing them a letter.

"A letter? What does it say?" Toriel asked.

"Um... 'After a while of thinking and a quick conference, I have decided to allow the following to go though initiation to participate in Beacon's academic lessons: Undyne, Alphys, Asgore, Toriel, Papyrus, and Sans. Initiation will take place at the Emerald Forest at noon tomorrow. If you have a weapon, please bring it.'" Sans read aloud.

"Wow. A chance to learn about this world. This is exciting." Toriel said.

"Hurray! I get to go to school!" Papyrus cheered.

"Clam down Papyrus. We have to go through initiation first." Sans said.

"I've always wanted to learn the truth about the surface's real history. This might be my chance to learn actual facts about Remnant!" Alphys said.

"Well, there is one last thing Ozpin told me." Asgore said. "Only four of us will be able to become a hunter/huntress team. The other two will have to teach the school about monsters and their natures." Asgore explained.

"I'll pass on becoming a team." Toriel said. "I've always wanted to be a teacher."

"And I will teach the students as well." Asgore said. "Although becoming a team does sound very interesting, I think they will need to know about using their souls to their advantage."

So that leaves it with me, Papyrus, Sans, and Alphys. I guess we'll become a team." Undyne said.

"Wowie! Not only do I get to go to school, but I also get to be on a team with my friends! This is the best day of my life!" Papyrus cheered.

Everyone couldn't help but smile at Papyrus's enthusiasm. "Alright everyone. It's getting late, and tomorrow is a big day. So everyone get some rest." Asgore said. Everyone nodded and got into a bed.

That night, Sans' dream was one he had many times, but this time it was worse. It was the corridor to the throne room, where he would fight the human. This time, it was Ruby. But she had a look that gave Sans a feeling of sheer fear. Before he could say anything, she attacked, aiming her scythe straight at his gut. He used his ability and dodged the attack, firing Gaster Blaster at her. She merely deflected it off Crescent Rose, chopping each bone to pieces. Sans, at this point, was panicking. He sent everything he had at her, Gaster Blasters, bone waves, sending her back with his power, but it was useless. She seemed to absorb the blows like they were nothing.

In his mind, the voice echoed. 'You couldn't save him. You couldn't save any of them. You can't save yourself.'

As it finished, Ruby's blade struck him, going through his chest. He fell to the ground, bleeding out. "Papyrus..." He said weakly.

He woke with a start, sweat coming down from his forehead. He looked around to see it was still night. He wiped the sweat off his head and jumped out the open window, summoning Gaster Blaster to hover him down safely. As he sat on a step, he saw something on a tree branch, cape flowing in the wind, rose pedals coming from it. It was Ruby.

Sans got up from the step and walked over to the tree. "Hey kiddo. What's got you up so early?" Sans said.

Ruby looked down to see Sans. "Oh, hey Sans. I just had a bad dream is all. What about you?" Ruby said.

"Same thing as you." Sans said simply. "Your arm holding up okay?" Sans asked.

"Yeah, getting a little itchy though." Ruby said, scratching the cast before remembering that won't do anything.

"Normal. So what was your dream about?" Sans asked.

"It was... about Asgore. About me fighting him. Me... almost killing him before..." Ruby paused, trying not to cry.

"Hey, it was just a dream, kiddo. He's still here, right? Or is he just my imagination?" Sans said.

Ruby giggled. "No, he's not just your imagination. But... before I woke up... Flowey killed him and took the souls. Was that what would have happened if I didn't go back for Alphys?" Ruby asked.

Sans sighed. "Yes. You would have had to fight Asgore and... well, if you dream about it, I shouldn't tell you. You'll find out yourself... maybe." Sans smiled.

Ruby couldn't help but smile too, wiping the tear that made it to her cheek off. "So what was your dream about?" Ruby asked.

"It was... well, it was a dream I had many times, but this time was way worse. Normally it would be a crazed human continually charging at me, me sending them back time after time. This time... it was you. You went through my attacks like they were nothing, and then... yeah. But you're not that evil. You're a good person, so I know you would never do something like that." Sans said.

"Well... thanks." Ruby said, then yawned. "I should get some sleep. This probably isn't good for my arm. You coming Sans?" Ruby said.

"Yeah. Oh, I just remembered. The six of us monsters were told we can attend classes here in Beacon, but have to go through initiation tomorrow noon. Looking forward to sharing puns with everyone here." Sans said.

"Jeez. Honestly, you, Toriel, and Yang should become pun-medians. If you had a nickel for every bad pun you made, I'm sure you would be swimming in cash." Ruby said.

"Heh heh. Not a bad idea. Maybe I can get Yang to do a pun-median act at a bar sometime." Sans chuckled.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "If you were a human, you two would be made for each other."

"Heh heh. Good thing I'm not, though. I like having her as just a friend." Sans said.

"Ah well. It would be cool to have someone like you as a bro-in-law. Ew, that's a weird picture. Never mind." Ruby said.

"What? Don't want me as a part of your family?" Sans joked.

"No, just thinking about how weird it is to have a human be with a skeleton." Ruby said.

"Well, technically humans are skeletons too, just with flesh around them." Sans said.

"Good point. But still." Ruby said.

"Yeah, I get ya. I would be weirded out too if I was a human and a skeleton asked me out." Sans said.

"Now you know how I feel about dating Papyrus. At the time I didn't think about it, but now I'm glad he wasn't into humans." Ruby said.

"Heh heh. Well, it was a good talk. Wish me luck tomorrow." Sans said.

"Alright. Good night Sans. And good luck tomorrow." Ruby said, going into her dorm and making sure not to wake any of her teammates. Sans did the same, but didn't sleep for a while.

'A war between humans and monsters. Ruby siding with us and being killed as a traitor. I hope that never happens. What do you think... Gaster?' Sans thought. 'Yeah, thought as much. Well, good night.' With that, Sans rolled over and went to a dreamless sleep.

A/N

Hey guys, I see you all liked the last chapter. I hope to bring you all what you want, so stay tuned for many good times. Also, the monster Kiora is an OC monster, suggested by Tanzantite-Pony, so props to you buddy. As for other OCs, I am still taking offers, so PM me for suggestions and leave a review if you want. Also, if you didn't get what the dreams were about, Sans' dream was the genocide route fight and Ruby's dream was the neutral Asgore boss fight. I will be posting some more content of the sort later on, but for now, see you guys in the next chapter!


	16. Chapter 16: A New Team

Chapter 16: A New Team

The next day, everyone went through their normal daily routine up until noon, where they were told to go to the auditorium. Once everyone had gathered in the auditorium, Glynda came up and spoke.

"I'm sure most of you have heard about the new recruits, but for those who have not, I will explain. Today, six of the top representatives of the monster race are here to go though Beacon's initiation test, like all of you have done. Four of them, Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, and Alphys, have been chosen to form a team, while the other two, Toriel and Asgore Dreemurr, have volunteered to become teachers. That is all." Glynda finished, signalling to the screen. The six monsters were on the pedestals, ready to go.

They launched, Toriel and Asgore using fire magic to propel themselves like the fire magic was rockets in their palms(think of it like how Iron Man flys). Papyrus took off his cape and used it as a parachute. Sans waited for the camera to not see him and summoned Gaster a Blaster to hover him down. Undyne used a spear to spin down a tree. She caught sight of Alphys using her jet pack phone to hover down.

"Well, they do have interesting landing tactics." Yang said.

"Toriel and Asgore certainly have an interesting travel method. That doesn't seem like fire dust their using." Weiss said.

"Well, monsters are made of magic instead of water, so..." Ruby said.

"Well, it seems the two are in combat right now." Blake said.

Sure enough, the two were fighting off a pack of Beowolves. Toriel used her fire magic to keep them at bay while Asgore used his trident to slash the Beowolves, occasionally using fire magic as well. One almost got Toriel, but she sent a ball of fire down it's gullet, setting it's insides ablaze.

"Happy eating." Toriel taunted. Sure, she was one for no violence, but from what she had read, Grimm were relentless killers, so she was doing a favor for the world by killing them. Soon enough, roasted and minced Grimm lay scattered around the area, their corpses decomposing.

"These things sure are a challenge." Asgore said, wiping sweat off his forehead.

Toriel remained silent, walking off.

"Hey, come on. How long can you hold a grudge?" Asgore said.

"A long time. Now come on. The longer we stay here, the more likely we'll get mauled by Beowolves." Toriel said.

Asgore shrugged and went along.

"Those two can fight, I'll give them that." Yang said.

"Toriel made a few combat mistakes, but Asgore was practically flawless in combat." Weiss said.

"Jealous?" Ruby smirked.

"No, I was just complimenting him on his ability to fight." Weiss said.

"Shush! Papyrus is fighting!" Yang said.

Sure enough, Papyrus was fending off an Ursa, smacking it with a bone club and summoning sharp bones at it. Unfortunately, Papyrus didn't read much on Ursa, making it hard for him to pin down his weak point. Soon, the Ursa had him pinned.

"D-dang it. How can I, the great Papyrus, be beaten this easily?" Papyrus said.

Before the Ursa could strike down, a wave of bones knocked it off it's feet, Sans with his hand up and eye flaming brightly.

"Stay. The hell away. From my bro." Sans growled, summoning Gaster Blaster to vaporize the Ursa. Sans took a sigh of relief and extinguished the flame in his eye. "Hey bro. You alright?"

Papyrus shook out of his shock and got up. "Y-yeah, but why did you never tell me you could do that?!" Papyrus said.

"Well, you never asked." Sans smiled.

"Fair enough. Which way is the temple?" Papyrus asked.

"I dunno. This way?" Sans said, pointing north. Papyrus shrugged and walked with his brother.

The auditorium was in shock at the supposedly lazy skeleton's sheer power. "Holy hell. He's got some power." Yang said.

"I never knew he had that amount of power." Ruby said, jaw nearly on her cast.

Weiss couldn't make a statement. She was too much in awe at his power. 'I thought only Schnees could summon guardians.' Weiss thought. 'But his eye... is this his semblance?'

Soon, the screen changed to Undyne fighting a King Taijitu. Both heads were deflecting her spear throws, but soon she thought of a plan. If she remembered correctly, Alphys was just up ahead. She initiated her plan, throwing a spear to distract the snake heads, then inserted a spear into the eyes of both the heads. "Now! Alphys, Thor Spear!" Undyne yelled.

From the trees, a bolt shot out and struck the spears, sending a surge of electricity through the two heads, frying their brains. "We did it! Now... can you help me get down?" Alphys said, showing her predicament. Her lab coat had gotten caught on a tree branch, making her immobile.

"I gotcha." Undyne said, swinging her spear and slicing the branch.

"'Thor Spear'. That's an interesting team attack." Yang said.

"Yeah, though it is very effective." Ruby said.

"I agree. Undyne's fighting tactics are pretty accurate." Weiss said.

"Well, she did learn from Asgore." Ruby pointed out.

After a while, the six monsters had made it to the temple, getting the artifacts that were there. They then proceeded to the cliff, killing any Grimm in their way.

After about an hour, they had made it to the cliff and have completed the initiation. They went to the auditorium to make the announcement and formation of their team.

"Toriel and Asgore Dreemurr, you two have completed the initiation with flying colors. We are proud to say that you are now teachers of Beacon Academy." Ozpin said, the auditorium filling with applause. On the screen, the four photos of the four monsters appeared. "Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, and Alphys. You all have been chosen to become a team. From now on, you will be known as team PAUS(Pause). Lead by... Papyrus the skeleton."

Papyrus looked shocked. "M-me? Leader?" Papyrus said.

"Good job, bro." Sans said, holding out his fist for a fist bump.

Papyrus smiled and fist bumped Sans, the crowd drowning the auditorium with applause. Ruby of course was the happiest of all, but sadly couldn't applaud.

The next week, things were back on normal schedule. Ruby's arm had fully recovered, so she was now able to spar and train again. She had even gotten Asgore's word to have a sparing match some time, which she was happy with. Although, her dream made her nervous. She shook it off. This would be a friendly match, not a battle to the death.

For the new team, they were mainly busy reading and coming up with weapon ideas, since Ozpin had given them the funds necessary to make their weapons. Papyrus had come up with a mace with retractable spikes and called it the Meatball. Sans decided to have a bone sword since he could use his ability to make it fly to the enemy and bring it back to him and to put in a bone pun on the sword and call it Funny Bone.

Undyne came up with a weapon like Pyrrha's. She wanted to have an amplifier for her spear to change the length to whatever she wanted and to turn it into a harpoon. She couldn't come up with a good punchline for the name, so she just called it Beast Catcher, since the harpoon part seemed to carry out that name. Alphys was having a hard time coming up with a weapon and sticking with it. She wanted a weapon like Ruby's, but also liked the idea behind Yang's gauntlets.

"Why not have both?" Undyne suggested.

"Huh?" Alphys said. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, why not have gauntlets with, I dunno, claws or something?" Undyne said.

Alphys scratched her chin. Claw gauntlets. The idea was... pretty badA. She immediately started drawing blueprints of the weapon until she got a design that she could get behind. It was like Yang's Ember Celia, but instead it had collapsible claws that went around Alphys's own claws. Basically like an extension of her claws. She called them the Thunder Razors, since she would be adding electric dust into the claws.

"Well, we got the weapon designs, let's get to them, shall we?" Undyne said.

"Alrighty! Priority number 1: make awesome new weapons! As your great leader, I, the great Papyrus, will lead us to many victories!" Papyrus cheered.

"Sometimes we think you are having too much fun." Sans joked.

"Whatever. Anyway, to the workshop!" Papyrus said, him, Undyne and Alphys rushing out the door.

"I'll just take a shortcut." Sans said, walking the opposite direction of the workshop.

After a while, they all made it, Sans somehow being the first one there. They got to work on their weapons, mainly finding the right material to use for the weapon. They soon got to work on the weapons, setting up all the necessary wires and such. Soon, Papyrus had already come up with a better idea to make his weapon more compact and made the ball part retractable, making it have a walking stick kind of form.

Sans decided to make some improvements to Funny Bone and have it be collapsible, since he would be taking it with him a lot.

After a while, Toriel and Asgore came into the workshop, both with blueprints of their own. "Hey guys! What do you have in mind for making?" Papyrus asked.

"Well, I wanted to make a sword with fire dust and maybe an amplifier for my fire magic." Toriel said.

"I wanted to improve my trident and make it have electric dust abilities, since the idea appealed to me somewhat." Asgore said.

"That sounds neat-o! I'm working on my mace, which had retractable spikes and changes into a hiking stick!" Papyrus said, showing them the blueprint.

"Ooh, interesting." Toriel said.

After a while, everyone had their weapons at least half way done. After a few stomach growls from everyone, Papyrus declared they should have a lunch break.

"Papyrus, it's 5 pm." Undyne said.

"Then we will have a dinner break!" Papyrus said.

Everyone chuckled and went off to the mess hall. On the way, they were joined by team JNPR. "Hey, we saw you guys working on those weapons, and I just got to say those are some good looking weapons." Jaune said.

"Why thank you! It is nice to know that some humans support us!" Papyrus said.

"Your welcome... I guess." Jaune said.

"Hey Pyrrha, I saw some footage of you fighting and you are one hell of a warrior. Care for a sparing match sometime?" Undyne said.

"Sure. I think the best way to know a person is through a friendly match." Pyrrha said.

"Well said. You speak like a true hero." Undyne said.

Meanwhile, Sans was passing the time telling some puns to Nora, who, thankfully, liked puns of his caliber.

Once they got to the mess hall, they took a seat across team RWBY(minus Ruby, for a reason they didn't know). They exchanged chatter, Nora flinging some food over to Yang, who caught them in her mouth.

After a while, Ruby came along with a huge binder. "Team, friends... Weiss." Ruby said.

"Hey!" Weiss said.

"Four score and seven minutes ago, I had an idea! I have arranged a bunch of events that will make the most fun anyone has ever had... EVER!" Ruby said.

"Isn't that my binder?" Weiss asked.

"I am not a crook." Ruby said, holding her hands up to show she wasn't crossing her fingers.

"Well, why so late in the month?" Undyne asked.

"Well, we only have a week until the semester starts off again, so I wanted to start it off with a bang!" Ruby said.

"Well, I always start my year off with a Yang! Huh? Anyone?" Yang said, everyone face palming.

"I thought it was funny." Sans said.

"Thank you." Yang said before Nora sent an apple at Yang, hitting her on the face.

"Well, if anything, I think we should use the last week of break to the fullest." Blake said.

"Well said, Blake!" Papyrus said.

"Thanks." Blake said.

Meanwhile, a mini food fight had begun between Yang and Nora.

"Well, I think-" Weiss had begun to say, but was cut off by a pie smashing into her face. Nora simply pointed to Ren, who was slightly face palming.

Outside, Toriel and Asgore were talking. "Honestly, you can't stay mad at me forever. Isn't there at least a little forgiveness in you?" Asgore said.

"Yes, but you have to earn it first." Toriel said simply.

"Fair enough. Man, looks like there's some sort of fight going on over there." Asgore said, pointing to the mess hall.

"Is this normal?" Toriel asked.

As if on queue, the door erupted, students rushing out with two boys standing in the doorway. One of them had blue hair and goggles with a jacket and jeans while the other boy had an unbuttoned shirt and jeans with a monkey tail coming out.

In the mess hall, a stack of tables were on the far side with Nora standing on top triumphantly, shouting "I'm queen of the castle!" in a song like tone. On the opposite side, team RWBY stood with team PAUS.

"Justice will be swift! It will be painful! It will be delicious!" Ruby declared, crushing a carton of milk, the team's charging. Papyrus grabbed a large turkey bone and swung at Jaune, who had already gotten a baguette as a sword. Papyrus rolled out of the way for Ruby to sent him flying. Meanwhile, Nora had gotten soda cans as grenades and tossed them at the opponents. Yang stuck her fists into two turkeys and used them as gauntlets, fighting Ren who shot up and threw his weapon at her, Pyrrha taking the opportunity and kicking her back. She grabbed a baguette and fought Undyne, who used a swordfish.

Sans was sitting back and watching the action, sipping on a bottle of ketchup.

Nora leaped up and got a metal poll, impaling a watermelon with one end. She then engaged in battle with Blake, who used a sausage link for her weapon. A ways away, Weiss was using a swordfish to battle Pyrrha, eventually being knocked back into a column. Ruby rushed in and caught her. "Weiss! Weiss, come back to me!" Ruby said, crying out.

Yang took two more turkeys and rushed in, fighting Nora, who eventually sent her through the roof. Ruby looked around and saw that all allies were out. She looked at Sans, who seemed to understand. She took off, using her semblance to spiral on. Sans used his ability to turn Ruby's soul blue, moving her gravitational pull toward the opposite wall to give her a bigger boost. The force nearly made the wall cave in, all of team JNPR on the wall and a wall of food rushing to them. Sans then changed Ruby's pull to the roof, getting her away from the wall.

After a little, Glynda came in and reared all the damage within a moment. "Children, please do not play with you food." Glynda said in a stern tone. The three teams were silent until Yang came crashing through the roof the three teams bursting into laughter.

"Let it go." Ozpin said, putting a hand on Glynda's shoulder.

Glynda sighed. "They're supposed to be the protectors of this world." Glynda said.

"And they will be. But for now, they are kids, so let them play the roll. They won't have that chance forever." Ozpin said.

"Well, that was a workout. I think we'll take a break from working today. For now, to the showers!" Papyrus said.

"Yeah, no kidding. This is going to be hard to wash out." Undyne said, looking at her now multi colored shirt. "I just washed this too."

The team laughed, heading off to the showers, except for Sans, who was the only one, aside from Ruby, who wasn't in a mess.

The two decided to talk. "That was a good idea. Might come in handy someday." Sans said.

"Yeah, I just thought of it off the top of my head." Ruby admitted.

"At least you can come up with a plan off the top. That's a good habit for a leader." Sans said.

"Thanks. By the way, how's Papyrus doing as a leader?" Ruby asked.

"He's doing fine. He says it's a little stressful, but nothing he can't do." Sans said.

"Is that a quote?" Ruby asked.

"Almost." Sans said.

Ruby giggled a little. "So are you familiar with games on Remnant?" Ruby asked.

A/N

Hey guys, I know, crappy cliffhanger, but I just flat out ran out of ideas, so sorry of this chapter was a little rushed. Life in a high school is far more stressful than I thought, especially when you're surrounded by idiots. Anyway, still taking OC requests, so if you want to see your OC in this fanfic and get credit, send me a PM and leave a review telling me if there's something I need to improve or if there's something you want to see. With that, see ya next chapter.


	17. Chapter 17: Reunion

Chapter 17: Reunion

After the teams were finally washed off, they went to the library to catch up on reading. However, it was kind of hard to concentrate when team RWBY was playing some sort of game. Alphys recognized it as some sort of imagination game she had once found in the junk yard back at the underground. She assumed it was just some sort of trash and had nothing to do with the history of the surface at the time, but now she realized it was pretty accurate.

Meanwhile, team JNPR and PAUS were talking about certain things that happened last semester, namely about Ruby, Blake and another girl stopping a raid on the docks.

"Wowie! That Blake girl sure knows where to find some interesting fights." Papyrus said, seeing Blake look questionably at him. "Uh, no offense, of course!" Papyrus said quickly.

Blake shrugged and went back to the game, though she didn't seem to be participating as much. It really only looked like Ruby and Yang were the only ones playing. That is, until Yang explained the game to Weiss. She was evilly happy at first, but then Ruby jumped into her arms, many confusing statements following.

"Well, some games aren't for some people, I guess." Undyne chuckled.

Jaune then went over, asking if he could join the game. Blake saw a chance and excused herself, allowing Jaune to play.

"Never saw him as the imagination kind of guy." Papyrus said.

"Yeah, though I'm not really one for that kind of game." Sans said.

A few minutes later, everyone went back to their dorms, Ruby excited about... something. What it was, the other two teams didn't know.

"What do you think she was so hyped about?" Undyne asked.

"Dunno. Probably doing something wildly dangerous and irresponsible." Sans said.

"That sounds like her. Maybe they're going to fight those White Fang guys. Sounds like they're the real news around here." Papyrus said.

"Well, let's not dwell too much into it. We still got a while before classes resume, so let's just take things slowly." Alphys said. Everyone nodded and continued their necessary studies, except for Sans, who was jotting down 'notes.' He recently bought a journal to store all his jokes and now was putting more effort into that than actually studying.

"Sans, can you at least take one minutes to study? We're all super behind in classes and you're just writing in your journal." Undyne said.

"Hey, these jokes ain't gonna write themselves." Sans said.

"Sans, what she means is at least get some studying in. After you're done studying, then you can write your jokes." Papyrus said.

"Alright, fine." Sans moaned, closing his journal and reading from a history book. "Honestly, this book is bigger than I am."

"Shut up and read." Undyne said.

The next day, the team decided to have a walk around town after breakfast. During that time, Ruby was telling what actually happened before the barrier was destroyed.

"You're joking right? Asriel died years ago, that's impossible that he would have resurrected by some miracle." Undyne said.

"It's true. And he was more powerful than anything I've ever seen, like he was a god." Ruby said.

"Now, just hold on." Weiss said. "Souls resurrecting a hypergod? Someone coming back to life through determination? That sounds like a bunch of bs to me."

"But it's true!" Ruby said.

"And how are you going to prove that?" Weiss said.

Before Ruby could respond, a voice came from behind her. "With me." Ruby turned around and her eyes widened, along with all the monsters. "Hey Ruby."

"I-it can't be. Asriel!" Ruby said, hugging Asriel.

"It's good to see you too." Asriel said.

"Wait, how are you still here? I thought you would turn back into a flower." Ruby said, letting Asriel go.

"To be honest, I'm just as confused as you. But I think I know what it is. When I released the souls, one of them refused to return, so it stayed with me. Now I can retain this form." Asriel said.

"That's amazing! Come on, we got to show Toriel and Asgore!" Ruby said.

"Wait! How do you think they'll react to their long dead son returning to them by some miracle?" Asriel said.

"Hm... good point. Alright, let me think... I think I have an idea." Ruby said, whispering something to Asriel, who smiled near the end. "Sound good?"

"That'll be sure to work! Thanks Ruby." Asriel said.

"Anything for a good person like you." Ruby said, holding out her fist. Asriel then returned the fist bump.

"So what is the plan?" Yang asked.

"Oh, you'll see it." Ruby said, a sly smile on her face.

After a while, Ruby found Toriel and Asgore in the library, both reading books on dust.

"Hey guys. How's it going?" Ruby said.

"Oh, hello Ruby. We were just catching up on dust properties. Dust is quite an interesting thing." Toriel said.

"Oh cool. Hey, can you do me a favor and put on these blindfolds?" Ruby asked, holding out two blindfolds.

"What for?" Toriel asked.

"It's a surprise. Now put them on." Ruby said. The two shrugged and put on the blindfolds. "No peeking." Ruby looked over at Asriel and signaled him forward. Some students in the library gave confused looks at Asriel, some murmurs about him. "Okay, take them off!"

They did as told and their eyes widened. "It can't be..." Asgore said.

"I-is it really you?" Toriel said in sheer shock.

Asriel nodded. "Hi mom and dad."

The two broke into tears, embracing their son in a hug. "Oh Asriel. It's really you!" Toriel cried.

"Yep. It's me. And it's all thanks to Ruby." Asriel said, looking over to Ruby.

"Oh, I wouldn't say it was all me." Ruby said.

"Please. If you had never come to the underground, none of this would have happened." Asriel said.

"He's right. Thanks to you, peace between monsters and humans is now within our reach. It's all thanks to you, Ruby." Asgore said. "I don't know how I could ever repay you."

"It's fine. It's all part of my job. Always helping people and never asking for anything in return. However, Asriel does have a request." Ruby said.

"Yes. I want us to be a family again." Asriel said. "I want us to forget about what dad did and everything that split us apart. Can we do that?"

"My son, that is all I have ever wanted. Toriel, please. Not just for me, but for our son." Asgore said.

Toriel thought about this for a moment before responding. "Yes. I will forgive you so we can be a family once more."

"Thank you. And Ruby, I don't know what I did to deserve this much. Your heart is one of a kind. You saved the monster race from an eternity of misery. You brought back my son. And you brought our family back together. If only everyone could be like you. The world would be a much better place." Asgore said.

"I'm happy to help those in need. You really don't need to repay me." Ruby said.

"You are indeed a humble huntress. I insist on repaying you. How about I teach you some techniques in return? It might help you in the future." Asgore said.

"Well, I had already planned on learning from you, so sure!" Ruby said.

"And Asriel, what do you plan to do?" Toriel asked.

"I want to become a hunter like Ruby. I regret trying to destroy the world, so I wish to atone for my mistakes. I feel helping people will allow me to do that." Asriel said.

"Well, you're not of age to attend Beacon, so how about you go to Signal. And maybe someday you'll make it to Beacon." Ruby said.

"That sounds grand. You watch, one day I'll be just as strong as you!" Asriel said.

Ruby giggled. "Do I hear a challenge?"

"Maybe. One day, I want to fight you again, but as a friend." Asriel said.

"Like a sparing match? That's a good idea. I would like to do that one day too." Ruby said.

The next day, everything was way calmer. Toriel and Asgore had taken Asriel to Signal, so they weren't around. At least, it was calm in the morning. That day, team RWBY had arranged a plan to get information about the White Fang, since the dock raid a few weeks back had them a bit worried.

"Alright team, today, we go out and get information about the White Fang. You all know your part, right?" Ruby said.

"Yup. I go to Junior's bar and get some info from him." Yang said.

"I will disguise as a White Fang recruit and see what they are planning, aside from destroying humanity." Blake said.

"And Ruby and I will go to the info tower to request some information about the White Fang." Weiss said.

"Good. Now, let's-" Ruby said, but was cut off by Sun outside.

"What you guys doin?" Sun asked.

"Oh, we're just planning out an info mission." Ruby said.

"Oh cool. Mind if Neptune and I tag along?" Sun said.

"Sure. Um... where's Neptune?" Ruby said.

"I'm out here. Hey, can I come in? This is very high up." Neptune said from outside. As he was about to come in, he lost his footing and fell. Fortunately, Sans was also listening and summoned Gaster Blaster to catch him.

"Watch the footing, kiddo." Sans said. "If I weren't here, you'd be a cool blue pancake mix on the ground."

"Yeah, thanks." Neptune said.

"Hey Rubes. Mind if I join this info raid?" Sans said.

"Sure. Alright, let's see. Neptune and Sans will go with Yang and Sun will go with Blake. Sound good?" Ruby said.

"Um, how about you go with Yang since she's your sister?" Weiss said.

"But who would go with you then?" Ruby asked.

"Well, I'll just go with Neptune." Weiss said.

"Pfft. Nah." Ruby said, dragging Weiss out of the room.

"I think someone's got a crush." Sans smirked.

"Well that's awkward. Alright, let's go." Yang said, everyone else going off.

A/N

Hey guys, hope you liked this chapter. Sorry if updates become less frequent. Play performances are happening this week, so I won't be able to update this story as often. However, I have a solution. Starting next week, I will be updating on Saturday not once, but twice! Just refer to it as Double-update weekend. Eh, sounded better in my head. Anyway, still taking OC requests, and I might put in an OC of my own at some point. Anyway, PM me if you have any OC requests and leave a review telling me if I can improve something or if you have an idea for the story. As I keep saying, I want this story to not just be my ideas alone. Anyway, thank you for reading, follow and fav so you don't miss an update, and I will see you probably next weekend.


	18. Chapter 18:Info Raid

Chapter 18: Info Raid

As planned, Weiss and Ruby went to the school's computer tower. However, Ruby got distracted by a familiar face. "Wait, is that Penny? Hey, Penny!" Ruby said, running off to get to Penny.

"Ruby!" Weiss exclaimed, but no use. Weiss sighed and walked on, going into the tower.

"Hey Penny! It's me, Ruby!" Ruby said.

"Sorry, I don't know you." Penny said plainly, walking off.

"What do you mean? Remember the docks? I was so worried about you!" Ruby said.

"Sorry, I don't know what you're talking about." Penny said.

"Penny, stop pretending. We're friends, remember?" Ruby said.

Penny stayed silent for a moment. "Ruby, my father forbid me from seeing you again, so please stay away from me."

"Penny, what are you talking about?" Ruby asked.

"It's not safe to talk here. Let's go into town." Penny said. Ruby nodded and the two walked off to town.

Meanwhile, Yang drove Neptune and Sans to the bar where she would be getting info about Roman. "Alright, it's right here." Yang said.

"Cool. I hope they got some ketchup here." Sans said, shaking an empty bottle of ketchup and frowning.

"Woah." Is all Neptune could say. Sans just nudged his arm a little and he got out of his trance state. "I'm good."

"Good. Now, don't cause any fights, just be cool and follow my lead." Yang said, approaching the doors.

Inside, Junior was having a drink, the bar as high in spirits as usual, which isn't very high. As he was taking another shot, two of his men came through the door and used themselves as barricades for the door. "Hey, what the heck are you two doing?" Junior said.

"Sir, it's-" one of the men tried to say, but was cut short by the door exploding open, Yang and the other two following.

"I'm back!" Yang said. As she said that, all the men pulled out their pistols and aimed them at Yang, the music now going in a loop, which annoyed Yang slightly. She shot a glare at the DJ sound system, and the guy hiding behind it quickly turned the music off.

"Well, isn't this a surprise? What are you doing back here?" Junior asked.

"I'm here for information. And you still owe me a drink." Yang said, dragging Junior to a table. Sans and Neptune looked at each other and shrugged, following Yang. On the way, Sans swapped ketchup bottles and started drinking out of his new one.

[meanwhile, with Blake and Sun]

The two had entered the warehouse where Intel told them that the White Fang was having a meeting here. They put on White Fang masks and Blake took off her bow, revealing her cat ears so she wouldn't be mistaken for a normal human. They crept up and peered around the corner to see a goon letting what Blake assumed was a Faunus couple in. "It's just over there. Remember, stay low and act when I do." Blake whispered to Sun.

Sun gave the thumbs up and they proceeded to the goon.

[a few moments later, Ruby and Penny]

The two talked while they were in town, mainly catching up on events that happened between their last encounter. "So that's how the monsters were freed." Penny said.

"Yeah, but strangely after that encounter with him, I felt... weird. Like something was missing." Ruby said.

"Maybe there's something you forgot in the underground?" Penny said.

"Maybe." Ruby shrugged.

"Hey Ruby!" Papyrus said across the street.

"Oh, hi Papyrus!" Ruby said, waving.

"Undyne and I were going to Muffet's cafe! What are you here for?" Papyrus said.

"Penny and I were just talking, catching up, etc." Ruby said.

"Ruby, are these two your friends?" Penny asked.

"Oh yeah. Penny, this is Papyrus and Undyne. Guys, this is Penny." Ruby said.

"Sal-u-tations!" Penny said.

"Greetings, human! I hope that we can become great friends!" Papyrus said.

"Just a heads up, he can be a little unpredictable." Undyne told Penny.

"I will be sure to keep that in mind." Penny said.

The four then proceeded, walking to the square, where there was some sort of presentation being held. "What's this?" Ruby asked.

"Oh, that? It's just the Atlas people showing their new 'muscle.' Honestly, those robots couldn't stop an army of Grimm just by looking at them." Undyne sighed.

Ruby noticed that Penny looked a little unnerved. "Hey Penny, you alright?" Ruby asked.

"Y-yeah. Fine." Penny said.

The presentation began, a group of shiny silver robots taking down an older looking version of themselves, flexing. "Pfft. They're just trying to look like me." Papyrus said. Then, a hologram of a huge robot appeared, looking like some super suit, since there was a crate like object in the chest.

During the show, two guards looked over at the four, mainly at Penny, and Penny bolted. "Wha- hey! Penny, wait!" Ruby said, running after Penny.

"Ruby! What in the world? Why did she just bolt?" Undyne said.

"I don't know, but let's go after them!" Papyrus said. Undyne nodded and the two ran after Ruby and Penny. During the chase, Ruby looked behind her to see the guards were coming after them as well. She saw a pile of easily collapsible crates and cut the load bearer, making the pile block the alley, leaving the guards and Papyrus and Undyne at a dead end.

As they approached the street, Penny looked back for a second, but failed to see a truck coming at her. She had no choice but to stop the truck, the concrete around her cracking. "Are you alright?" Penny asked the drover, who nodded. Penny looked around to see everyone staring at her, and she ran off down an alley.

"Penny!" Ruby called out. Soon, she slowed down, allowing Ruby to catch up. "What was that? Why did you run?"

"Ruby, it's best for you not to involve yourself with me." Penny said, hiding her hands.

"Penny, I'm your friend! If you need help with something, just tell me!" Ruby said.

"Can you keep a secret?" Penny asked.

"Of course." Ruby nodded.

"I'm not a real girl." Penny said, showing her palms to show that there were peals in her skin, revealing metal plating.

"Oh." Ruby managed. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"Would you have still been my friend?" Penny said.

"Oh course I would have! It doesn't matter if you're made of wires and metal, you can think for yourself. That makes you human." Ruby said.

Penny then wrapped her arms around Ruby. "Thank you Ruby. You're the best friend I could ever ask for!"

"Thanks. Also, you're kinda chocking me." Ruby coughed.

"Oops, sorry!" Penny said, letting Ruby go.

"It's fine." Ruby said, feeling her throat. They then heard footsteps coming toward them.

"Ruby, hide quick!" Penny whispered, moving Ruby to a dumpster.

"Will you be alright?" Ruby asked.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine! If they see you with me, you'll be in trouble too." Penny said. Ruby nodded and hopped into the dumpster. "Ruby, can I trust you with this secret?"

Ruby make a zipper motion across her lips. "My lips are sealed."

"Thank you, friend." Penny said, closing the dumpster.

"Penny! Are you alright? Is there any damage?" A guard asked.

"Just a scratch!" Penny said, holding out her hands.

"Your father won't be happy about this. You made a huge scene back there." The guard said, the two taking Penny off.

Ruby waited for a while and was about to open the dumpster when she heard Papyrus and Undyne, trying to find her.

She hopped out and wiped the dirt from her clothes. "I'm fine guys. No need to worry." Ruby said.

"Thank God. Where's Penny?" Undyne said.

"She went off with the guards. She said she'll be fine." Ruby said.

"I'm sure she can take care of herself! What was that all about anyway?" Papyrus said.

"I promised her not to talk about it, but I might tell you later." Ruby said.

"Alright. If it's for a good reason, I won't push you." Undyne said.

[BONUS SEGMENT, three days ago]

Roman was sitting back and relaxing while smoking his cigar until the door opened, revealing two people, Mercury and Emerald. "Oh, and she brought the kids! This is turning out just like the divorce." Roman said. "So, where were you?"

"Taking care of your business." Emerald said, tossing the slip of paper with an address.

"I was going to take care of him." Roman said.

"One fare ticket says otherwise." Mercury said.

"And one gravity pull can say otherwise to your life." A shaded figure in the corner said. He raised his left arm, slightly lighting up and a few pebbles around Mercury raising up.

"Now now, 3R1C, that's not necessary." Cinder said. 3R1C sighed and lowered his arm, the pebbles dropping down. "He did do a good thing for us."

"Yes, but he DID steal my contract." 3R1C grunted.

"Don't worry, 3R1C, you'll get your chance soon. We have a few... huntresses that need cleaning up, and a few monsters. You should be able to take care of them fairly quickly. We plan on holding a showing of our new toys soon, won't we Roman?" Cinder said.

"Of course. And who better to make sure nothing happens than the Gravity Bender himself?" Roman said.

"My purpose is to be a bodyguard? That is not enough to test my skills. I need a greater challenge than watching someone's ass." 3R1C said.

"Like I said, dear. You'll have your chance to shine bright." Cinder said.

"And please do not kill these two if they steal your target again. They are very much needed." Roman said.

"Very well. Just know that if you get in my way of perfecting this world, I will sent you into the world of no living." 3R1C warned, levitating up.

"Is he a project?" Mercury asked.

"He's much more than that. He's a weapon of mass destruction." Emerald said.

"Exactly. Good observing skills, gem. Now get along, I have a lot of work to do." Roman said.

"If you plan on robbing another dust shop, don't worry. We have what we need. Phase two is now underway." Cinder said.

Roman sighed and pulled out another cigar, reaching for his lighter to find he doesn't have it. He looked over at Emerald, who shrugged. He then looked up to see 3R1C with the lighter.

"Need to borrow your light for a sec, gramps." 3R1C chuckled.

Roman sighed and leaned back.

A/N

Hey guys, hope you liked the chapter. Also, please tell me if you liked the bonus segment I added. Just as a heads up, 3R1C is my OC. I will go more into detail about his abilities later, but I think you all know his power just by the name he's given by Roman. He has the ability to manipulate gravity in a certain range. I will go more into detail later, but for now, PM me for ideas or OCs and leave a review with your thoughts.


	19. Chapter 19: Project 3R1C

Chapter 19: Project 3R1C

"I'm telling you, I don't know what he did to them." Junior said.

"Sounds like you don't keep your men in check." Sans said, taking a sip of ketchup.

"All I know is Roman came in and payed for some of my men. They never came back. He must not have been satisfied with them, which is SOMETHING I CAN RELATE TO!" Junior shouted, the men who were 'off duty' straightening up.

"I'm not asking about your men, I'm asking what he TOLD you." Yang growled.

"He said he needed dust for something. He didn't go into many-" Junior said.

"Okay, I'm bored." Sans said, raising his hand and flinging Junior to the wall, pinning him.

"Woah! Hey, what's the big deal?" Junior exclaimed.

"What does he need the dust for and where is he hiding?" Sans said, summoning Gaster Blaster.

"Sans, isn't that a little..." Yang said.

"Extreme? Nah, I do this all the time." Sans said.

"Okay! Okay! I'll talk! He's hiding in some warehouse nearby!" Junior shouted.

"See? Was it that tough?" Sans said, releasing Junior and de-summon Gaster Blaster.

"Well, your methods are questionable, but they do get results." Neptune said.

"At least we know where he is. One of many warehouses." Sans said. "Start the search I guess."

[Meanwhile, in the warehouse]

Blake and Sun had gotten into the warehouse, where Blake saw many grunts and goons, but what caught her eye was a shaded man on a balcony, leaning back and watching the crowd.

Soon, the speech began. Roman came out and many of the new Faunus were surprised, whispering and asking why a human is in charge. "Hello new recruits! Now I know what you think when you look at me. 'Why is a human here?' Well, don't worry, we're all on the same page here. Humans are the worst. They steal, murder, discriminate. That's why I'm here. I have given the White Fang more guns, dust, and toys in the past year than they have gotten in ten. And to introduce two beautiful new hands to our deck. First is this puppy!"

Beside Roman opened a trap door, revealing an Atlastian Paladin. The whole warehouse was filled with cheered and surprise. "AND! A new member! Come on down, buddy!" Roman said. With that, the shaded figure jumped down, or more like levitated down. "This is a little project we stole from the Atlas labs. Say hello to Project 3R1C, or Eric for short."

Eric bowed. "Greetings, members." Eric said. The whole warehouse was filled with confusion.

"He may not seem like it, but trust me, he is a natural badass." Roman said.

Blake observed Eric. He had messy white hair and slightly pale skin. He wore a blue T-shirt and blue and white half zipped jacket. He had blue jeans and blue and white shoes. He was thin and had a slight mustache growing. The only significance she saw in him was the weapon he had, which was a blue sword with a diamond in the hilt. It was a single edged sword with a button on the other side of the hilt. Blake didn't want to know what it was for.

"This is bad. We have to warn the others." Blake whispered to Sun.

"We got bigger problems right now." Sun said, signaling to two guards who were pointing at them. "What now?"

Blake looked around and found a fuse box. "They can't see in the dark." Blake said, pulling out Gambol Shroud in pistol form and shooting the fuse box, shutting off all the lights.

They ran out, hearing the Paladin power up on the way out. Behind them a chunk of earth was thrown at them with Eric standing a ways away. "What? You thought you would make it out alive?"

Sun grabbed Blake and jumped over the chunk. They proceeded running, Blake pulling out her scroll and getting everyone's attention.

"Everyone, they ha- gravity-weapon-" Blake said over the scroll. Their connection was bad, making the message hard to decipher.

"What do they have? What about gravity and weapon?" Weiss said.

"They have a freak and a Paladin!" Sun yelled.

"A Paladin?! Oh hell." Undyne said.

"What kind of freak?" Yang asked. Just then, the two came rushing across an alley, followed by a slab of earth shattering behind them and a Paladin chasing them. "Oh."

"Is that our cue to go?" Sans asked.

"Yep." Yang said. "Get on."

Neptune and Sans didn't argue. They got on the motorcycle and they rode to fight the two.

On the highway, Blake and Sun were jumping from car roof to car roof, trying to get as far as possible from the two. Eric picked up a car and sent it at the two, it colliding with the cars they were on. Sun pulled out his Gun-chucks and fired at the Paladin, the bullets bouncing off.

"That's a tough hatch! We need to weaken it!" Sun said.

"First we got to even out the fight!" Blake said.

Just then, a laser fired past the Paladin, knocking off Eric, who quickly levitated onto a car. "Hey kiddo. Ready for a bad time?" Sans said to Eric, sending him into the fist of the Paladin, knocking him out cold. "One kid down."

"Good. Get him on and tie him up. He might be of use." Yang said. Sans nodded and got Eric on the bike, making room very tight.

Weiss came in the path of the Paladin and make the road in front of it icy, causing the Paladin to slide off the highway. There, Ruby, Papyrus, and Undyne raised their weapons at the Paladin. Ruby fired a few rounds at the Paladin, but they simply bounced off. "We're going to need a lot of fire power to stop this thing." Ruby said.

"Yeah, no kidding." Undyne said, changing Beast Catcher to spear mode. She extended the shaft to about twice the length and twirled, spinning up the strike and jabbing at the hatch of the Paladin, only causing a scratch on the paint. "Okay, that's worrisome." Undyne said.

Then, Ruby got an idea. "Sans! Remember that attack we used before?" Ruby said.

"What do you-" Sans said, but then remembered the food fight three days ago. "Oh. I gotcha kiddo."

Ruby picked up speed, circling around the Paladin and then launched herself toward a support column. "Now!" Ruby commanded. She launched herself forward, Sans and Papyrus using their ability to shoot her faster, but she only managed to buy them some time, knocking the Paladin back a few yards. "Great."

"Alright, no more messing around. Taking off the kiddie gloves, so better put on the big boy pants. Time for you all to die." Roman said, shooting an aura piercing shot at Ruby, but something got in the way. It was Undyne.

"U-Undyne!" Ruby said.

"D-don't worry. Just a scratch. Go! Get to safety!" Undyne said.

"B-but..."

"Go! I'll be fine!" Undyne said.

"Ruby come on!" Yang said.

Ruby then heard something she never expected. Laughter from Undyne. "You're going to have to try harder than that!" Undyne yelled, light enveloping her. Her form changed, her eyepatch now on the ground, her armor now shining brighter, her hair spiky. "FIGHT A TRUE HERO, COWARD!" Her voice seemed to echo, not because of the silence.

"Alright." Roman sighed, the Paladin firing again at Undyne. However, Undyne sliced through the bullet like butter, charging at the Paladin and slicing the arm in half, making it useless. Ruby then noticed Undyne's spear changed from blue to bright green.

"Is that her semblance?" Ruby wondered. "Awesome."

Roman saw the danger he was in and retreated, dodging Undyne's strike that would have sliced the Paladin in half. "If I keep my distance..." Roman said, firing at the warrior, who simply slashed through each round.

"She can't hold up forever. Weiss, freeze the Paladin in place. Blake, give Undyne some momentum. Papyrus, Sans, give her a boost." Ruby ordered. Everyone nodded and went to work. Blake threw Gambol Shroud to Undyne while Papyrus and Sans took control of her gravity. Weiss got around to freezing the Paladin in place, making Undyne's job easier. Undyne was at full speed, but the Paladin was starting to break through the ice, moving just out of her reach. "I got an idea! Blake, let her go in the opposite direction of the Paladin. Yang, give her a boost."

"How am I-" Yang was about to say, then pieced it together. "Oh, I gotcha." Yang smiled. Blake sent Undyne to Yang and the two collided their feet, jumping from the other's. That gave Undyhe the momentum she needed, spinning in a spiral like a drill, going straight through the Paladin, which collapsed soon after.

"Ugh, I just got that thing washed, too." Roman grumbled.

As Undyne came in for the finishing blow, her attack was blocked by Neo, a girl with pink and black hair, eyes, and... well, everything.

"Sorry to break it to ya, but I'm afraid this fight must be put on hold." Roman said. "Neo, if you will."

"OH NO YOU DON'T!" Undyne roared, throwing her spear at the two, their images shattering. Undyne looked behind her and saw a bullhead taking off. She sighed and her form shimmered, morphing back to her normal self. "Got away."

"I guess they made our plans... shatter." Weiss joked.

"No. Just no." Yang sighed.

"What? You do it all the time!" Weiss protested.

"To be honest, it was pretty crummy even for my standards." Sans said, everyone chuckling.

Ruby went over to Undyne. "So is that your semblance? I guess that's why they call you Undyne the Undying." Ruby said.

"Yeah. Although, I can't use it for a good while, every time random. It could be a day, could be a year. Or it could be an hour." Undyne said.

"So it's like a cool down for your semblance?" Ruby asked.

"In a way, yes. I never knew I had it until one battle. Although, I got cocky that battle, costing me my eye." Undyne said, touching her eyepatch.

"Well, it sounds worth it if you ask me." Ruby said.

"It's harder than you think being a cyclops." Undyne said.

"Sorry." Ruby apologized.

Undyne chuckled. "I'm joking with ya. Come on, we need to get back to Beacon and ask what to do with that Eric guy."

"That's something that bugs me. Why is he so special?" Ruby asked.

"Something about using gravity to his advantage or something." Undyne shrugged.

An hour later, the group returned to Beacon, Eric in their custody. Fortunately, the hit made him unconscious for a good while, making their job easier. "So this is the 3R1C unit you to,d me about?" Ozpin said.

"Yeah. Blake said they took him from an Atlastian lab." Ruby said.

"Ironwood won't be pleased to hear that, but you got him back, so I will contact Ironwood and see what to do with him. For now, you all have done good. Get some rest." Ozpin said.

They left with a few "yes sir"s. Meanwhile, Eric was taken to the secret bunker under the school. As he was chained up, he started to stir.

"Wh-what the... Where am I?" Eric said.

"So, you finally wake up." Ozpin said.

"Who are you? Is this some sort of White Fang bunker?" Eric asked.

"I am Ozpin, and you are in no White Fang bunker. You are in a bunker, alright, but one underneath Beacon." Ozpin said.

"Then you are an enemy." Eric growled, trying to left his hand, but realized his arms were held together.

"Don't try your gravity manipulation. You'll just hurt yourself." Ozpin said.

"What do you want? My life? My power?" Eric asked.

"Your knowledge. Why are you working for the White Fang? You are an Atlas project, yet you went rogue. Why is that?" Ozpin asked.

"I was always designed to destroy humanity. I am not an Atlas pet project." Eric shot back.

Ozpin pulled out a file. "Ironwood says otherwise." He opened the file in front of Eric and his head started to hurt.

"Gah! Wha-what is this? What are you doing to me?" Eric said.

"I'm returning your memory. The White Fang must have brainwashed you." Ozpin said.

Eric started to scream in agony. He then saw visions, fire, blood, sparks, metal, darkness. Then, he saw the White Fang shoving in a disc into his head, then everything going white. "I... I know who I am now. The White Fang... Him... they all... must... Die."

"Your mental state is unstable, so we will keep you here. When we think you are stable enough for the school, we will let you go." Ozpin said.

"No. I must go! He must pay! He killed them all! He destroyed everything I love! HE NEEDS TO DIE!" Eric yelled, struggling to get out.

"Vengeance isn't healthy for the mind. Take the time to cool off, regain sanity, and then you can learn more." Ozpin said.

Eric slowly stopped struggling and sighed. "Ozpin... do you hate the White Fang?"

"They need to be spared, not slain. I would not say I hate them, but I do not agree with their methods." Ozpin said.

"Then you are blind. This world is-"

"Kill or be killed? Only against the Grimm. For humans, monsters, and Faunus, they do not need to be killed." Ozpin said.

"Spare me your sentiments. That is for children. The real world is no fairy tale. It is hell." Eric said.

Ozpin sighed. "You are going to be tougher than I expected. I will leave you here to your thoughts. Have a good night." With that, Ozpin left.

"How can people be so blind?" Eric said to himself.

"Because it's their nature." A dark voice said.

Eric looked around, but saw nobody. "Who's there?"

"Why, I'm right here."

Eric looked down to see a little flower. "Who are you?"

"I'm Flowey. Your best friend." Flowey said.

"I don't have friends. They all died that day." Eric said.

"That's a little lonely. Here, how about a little favor. I free you, you give me a few souls. Human ones, though. Monster souls aren't as strong." Flowey said.

"Just kill some humans? Deal." Eric said.

"Excellent." Flowey smiled, releasing Eric.

"Know that I will not kill innocent people, as a White Fang would. I will only kill the corrupt." Eric said.

"Fine by me. Doesn't matter who's soul you give me." Flowey said.

"Why do you want souls, by the way?" Eric asked.

"And here I thought you wouldn't ask questions. Let's just say I'm soulless. Literally. My counterpart was taken from me as well, so I'm even more empty. Six human souls should do." Flowey said.

"Hmph. Fine. Just know if you try to back stab me, I will de-root you and send you to the no oxygen place." Eric said.

"Noted." Flowey smirked.

[BONUS SEGMENT, next day, mess hall]

Team PAUS were walking to the table they usually sit at when they saw a new person at the table, talking with RWBY. She had multi colored hair and one eye, her eyepatch with an emblem on it. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and had golden eyes, her skin very light.

"Hey guys! Who's this?" Papyrus said.

"Oh, hey guys! This is Kerási Péfko, but we sometimes call her Kiki for short. Kiki, this is-" Ruby said.

"No need to tell me. Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, Alphys. You four are quite famous recently." Kerási said.

Team RWBY looked at Kerási like she just did a magic trick. "This is new. You're usually extremely timid around new people." Ruby said.

"I was kind of looking forward to meeting these four. I knew they would be nice, so I knew they wouldn't be mean." Kerási said.

"An honor! We would be happy to be friends! Right, guys?" Papyrus said.

"I feel like we cyclops buddies will get along quite well." Undyne joked, nudging Kerási's arm playfully.

Kerási giggled. "Cyclops buddies. Although you have your right eye and I have my left eye."

"Does that mean if they merge, they'll have two eyes?" Sans joked.

"Well, I wouldn't want to find out." Kerási said.

"Yeah, I'm fine without depth perception." Undyne said.

They then went on, Sans and her exchanging puns for a while. "Looks like we got another member of the pun medians." Yang said.

"Pun medians?" Kerási asked.

"It's a little group Yang and I are making. There's also Toriel, but she's been occupied with Asriel and school work to actually do much for it." Sans explained.

"I kinda miss Toriel. We haven't seen her in a while." Papyrus said.

"Yeah, her puns may have been bad, but she did lighten things up." Undyne said.

"Anyway, care to join our group?" Sans asked Kerási.

"I would, but if it's in front of so many people I just couldn't." Kerási said.

"She has social anxiety." Ruby explained.

"Ah, I gotcha. It won't be around too many people, just the three- sorry, four of us. And maybe with a small group of people, but not too many. If it does come to that, we won't blame ya if you back out." Sans said.

"Well, if you say so, then sure." Kerási said.

"Yay! The pun-medians grow! Soon, we will overcome all foes with our righteous puns of awesome hilarity!" Yang said.

"Or put them to sleep." Undyne joked.

"Or make jokes so bad their brain cells implode." Alphys said, rubbing her temples.

"Hey, our jokes aren't that bad!" Yang protested.

"I dunno. We're getting there." Sans smiled.

Everyone laughed and continued talking and eating.

A/N

Hey guys, time for DOUBLE UPDATE SATURDAY! Hope you liked this chapter. It seems our flower friend isn't out just yet, so stay tuned to see how he fits into the story. Also, Kerási is an OC submitted by Boom-Ducks15. If you read this, thank you for your submission. I hope I don't get OOC with her, because, honestly, I can really relate to her(aside from the eye deal). Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter, I will probably announce when I am no longer taking OCs, so until then, don't be shy to submit your own OC into the story! Just PM me for a request and leave a review telling me if there's something I should change, such as OOC notices, story line changes, or something you want to see! This is a team effort, we're all friends here, so don't be shy to submit a request or idea. Also, kudos to those who can identify the BL2 reference in this chapter. I'll be sure to make many more references in the future. With that, see you next chapter!


	20. Chapter 20:Many Types of Dancing

A/N

Surprise! Author note in the beginning! Here's chapter 20! Man, to think this fanfic only started out as me expecting for nothing, but here we are! I'm going to make this a special chapter and make it a long one! Stick with me on this one! With that, enjoy!

Chapter 20: Many Types of Dancing

It was the next day, after breakfast, and teams RWBY and PAUS were assigned the task of setting up for the ball in two days.

"Fog machines? That is awesome! Why would we not?" Papyrus said.

"Exactly! But Apparently, Ice Queen over here wants doilies." Yang said.

"Sorry I want to be classy!" Weiss defended.

"Well, to be fair, doilies are a little too classy." Sans said.

"For you." Undyne said.

"For me." Sans repeated.

"Why can't we just have both?" Ruby suggested.

"Yes! That's good! Onto the next thing! We have two days to make preparations and we can't spend them deciding between doilies and fog machines!" Alphys said.

"She has a point." Undyne said.

"Fine. What about desserts and beverages?" Weiss said.

Everyone looked at Blake, hoping for something. "Yo, Blake. You there?" Sans said.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Maybe some punch, or-" Blake said.

"Blake, were you starting to fall asleep on us?" Undyne asked.

"Definitely. She has more bags under her eyes than an airport has." Sans said.

"I'm fine! I'm just not getting as much sleep as I normally do, is all." Blake said.

"Blake, you run on the mornings by ten coffees and an energy drink, and you don't even like that stuff." Yang said.

"I'm fine! Can we please go back to talking about the ball prep or whatever?" Blake said.

"It'll be for nothing if you won't even help, let alone come to it." Ruby said.

"What's the point of it?" Blake said.

"It's been an eventful week, so we need someway of taking our minds off the stress." Papyrus said.

"Yeah, a stressful life isn't anyway to live." Sans said.

"But what about Roman and the White Fang? They won't just capture themselves!" Blake argued.

"They'll be brought to justice in due time, but for now-" Undyne said.

"If they aren't stopped now, they'll continue causing chaos!" Blake said.

Everyone was startled by Blake's sudden outburst, making Blake leave the room. "That could have gone better." Weiss said.

"She'll be fine. She just needs time to cool off." Yang said.

"I hope so. I hate seeing a friend in such distress." Ruby said.

"Don't worry, kiddo. She'll be fine. Like Yang said, she needs time." Sans said.

"Let's get back to the ball. The decorations aren't going to plan themselves." Weiss said.

"Right. How about some bubbles? They're pretty when light gleams off them." Undyne suggested.

[meanwhile, in Vale]

"So who is the first target?" Eric asked.

"Faunus aren't reliable souls. They'll just be too messy and the whole thing will become a total waste." Flowey said.

"Right, so no Faunus souls. We'll have to only get human souls." Eric said.

"Yes, but not children souls. They're too weak and fresh. It would take years to get their full power." Flowey said.

"Didn't plan on killing any kids. Adult human souls. This shouldn't be too hard. I'll see what I can do." Eric said, levitating up to the rooftops. However, when he got up, he was met with a gun barrel.

"Hello, freak." The man said. Eric observed the man.

'No Faunus traits, adult human, and well far from innocent.' Eric thought. 'Perfect.' He grabbed the gun and kept the man's hand on it. He then sent multiple bolts of electricity into the gun, shocking the man. Fortunately, Eric knew that electricity wouldn't keep the soul, so he then threw the man off the roof, cracking his spine on the cement.

"Order up. One adult human soul." Eric said.

"Good work." Flowey chuckled, absorbing the soul. The reaction was not what Eric expected. From the ground, vines erupted, twisting and combining around Flowey until they disconnected from the ground, Flowey now in a human form made of vines. "Having a human form is better than I expected. Although, we're far from over. Five more will do."

"And I shall be rewarded as well, right?" Eric said.

"Of course. You are my most reliable ally." Flowey assured. 'But not the way you think.' Flowey thought.

[back to teams RWBY and PAUS]

They had finished coming up with the decorations to the ball and have given the list to Ozpin. "Very well done. Before you leave, there is one thing I must tell you." Ozpin said.

"What is it, sir?" Undyne asked.

"Remember that 3R1C unit you recovered a while back? Well, something assisted in his escape. The only trace was broken restraints and vines." Ozpin explained.

They all racked their brains thinking of who would do it, when a thought popped into Ruby's head. "Flowey." Ruby said with slight horror.

"Wait, that's impossible! Asriel was Flowey, how could he be here without Asriel supporting him?" Alphys said.

"I don't know, but I know Flowey would do it. He's most likely desperate to get the human souls, and when he gets six..." Ruby didn't want to imagine what Flowey would turn into should he get six human souls.

"Your reason and guess makes sense. However, we have no lead as to where he is. However, we did get a report of a dead criminal in an alley, fried and shattered spine. They also said, despite of him being fried, he was cold as death." Ozpin said.

"Flowey and Eric must have killed him and taken his soul. But why don't they take souls of the White Fang? Eric despises them, you said so yourself." Ruby said.

"A fair point. My theory is that a Faunus soul would complicate Flowey's transformation, due to their complex genetic build." Alphys said.

"You are correct. Flowey would gain animal traits should he absorb a Faunus soul, and he wants to become something far greater." Ozpin said. "However, the fact that he has one soul means he only needs five others before he becomes all powerful."

"We'll be sure to keep an eye out for a mutated flower." Yang said, giving the thumbs up.

"Thank you. You may return to your activities." Ozpin said. Everyone nodded and went back down.

However, the thought of Flowey still out there had Ruby worried. 'What if he comes here? What if he gets six from us? What if his next target is Beacon itself?' Ruby thought.

"Hey Rubes, you alright?" Yang asked.

Ruby realized she must have been so deep in her thoughts, she must have missed something. "Oh, yeah. I'm good." Ruby said.

"Worried about that flower?" Yang asked.

"Yeah."

"Don't worry, I'm sure they'll stop those two before any more real danger can happen." Yang assured.

"Yeah, I'm sure you're right." Ruby said.

"Come on, let's forget about those guys for just two days. Life isn't enjoyable when you stress all the time." Yang said, wrapping an arm around Ruby's head.

Later that day, the two teams had the room almost set, but their preparations were slowed by a few argues about decorations. Papyrus and Sans wanted to have bones on the tables instead of flowers, since they liked the appeal, but everyone said it would look more like a Halloween ball.

"What's so wrong with a few bones here and there?" Papyrus said.

"This isn't a spook fest. This is a nice, calm, and peaceful ball." Weiss said.

"And? Bones can be peaceful." Sans said.

"Yeah, some people might find the look of bones to be peaceful." Papyrus said.

"And in what way is that peaceful?" Undyne asked.

"We're made of them." Papyrus said.

Undyne face palmed. "You two are hopeless."

"What? Are we getting ya down to the bone?" Sans joked.

"If we let you have a few bones around, will you finally shut up?" Undyne sighed.

"Sure." Sans said.

With that, they tied some bones on some streamers and put them around the windows, making sure to have it look as little morbid as possible.

Meanwhile, Ruby sat with her face in her arms. "Hey kid. What's got you bummed out?" Sans asked.

"I'm worried Blake won't come. This ball won't be fun without her." Ruby sighed.

"Don't worry. She's coming. I'll make sure of that." Yang said.

"Yeah, if she misses out on this, she's going to have a very bad time." Sans said.

"Now you make it sound personal." Yang joked.

"What? Too far?" Sans asked.

"Little bit." Ruby said.

"Heh heh. Sorry. But Yang's right, she's going to come." Sans said.

[the next morning]

Kerási was walking down the halls, looking over some notes she had since the semester starts up in a few days. On the way, she saw Yang heading to the library with... a laser pointer? Kerási ran after Yang. "Hey Yang."

Yang turned to see Kerási. "Oh hi Kiki. What's up?"

"Just going over notes. What's with the laser pointer?" Kerási asked.

"Just something to get Blakey's attention." Yang said.

"Oh, let me guess. She's not coming to the ball tonight and you're wanting to convince her otherwise." Kerási guessed.

"Nailed it. If you want to help, that'd be cool." Yang said.

"Anything for a fellow pun-median." Kerási said.

The two chuckled and walked to the library.

Meanwhile, at the dock area, a bullhead pulled in with Toriel and Asgore waiting. When the bullhead landed, their son came out, hugging the two.

"How are you enjoying Signal, my boy?" Asgore said.

"It's great! The people there are way nicer than I expected! I guess monsters are quickly fitting into life around here." Asriel said.

"That's good to hear." Toriel said.

"Hey, how's everyone doing here?" Asriel asked.

"Well, we haven't talked to them much since we've been busy with you and teaching." Toriel said with slight guilt.

"I understand. And with the peace between humans and monsters being a big deal and all, I guess you guys have been extra busy." Asriel guessed.

"You are an observant one." Asgore chuckled. "Although, we are also very busy tracking down an 3R1C unit that escaped."

"That's the one guy that can manipulate gravity, right?" Asriel asked.

"Yes. He escaped with the help of... another culprit." Toriel said. She didn't want to tell her son that his counterpart was out there with the unit. Though she doubted he would come for him, she wanted to be sure.

"Well, hope you find them." Asriel said.

"We hope so too. Good timing for you to visit, too. The ball we're having is tonight. Would you care to come?" Asgore said.

"Sure! I might be able to talk to the others too!" Asriel said.

As they walked to their dorm, they ran into Yang and Kerási. "Oh, hey Tori." Yang said.

"Hello, Yang and Kerási. How are you two?" Toriel said.

"We were just going down to the library to talk to Blakey. Oh, hey Asriel! How's signal?" Yang said.

"It's awesome there! I actually made a few friends down there, like this one girl named Pira. She's nice, but can be a little grumpy." Asriel said.

"Well, good to see you're fitting in." Yang said, rubbing Asriel's head. "Well, we got to go now, see you guys later."

"Who was the other girl with her?" Asriel asked.

"Oh, that was Kerási, or Kiki for short. She has a little... social anxiety, so she's not fighting in the arena very much." Toriel said.

"Well, everyone has their downsides." Asriel said.

[meanwhile, team PAUS's dorm]

Papyrus was out in the workshop fixing the bugs in Meatball while Undyne and Alphys talked. They hadn't gotten much of a chance to talk since being in Beacon, so they took this chance.

"So how's the claws going?" Undyne asked.

"Thunder Razor is coming along very well. One problem I'm having though is the integration of electric dust. It's so complicated, though so many people can do it." Alphys complained.

"Well, maybe you're thinking too complicated. Maybe get someone to help you, like Weiss. She seems familiar with dust." Undyne said.

"Good idea. I should ask her after the ball." Alphys said.

"Speaking of which, would it be too awkward for us to dance together at the ball?" Undyne asked.

"Nah, I'm sure people won't judge too much. Maybe they'll just think of it as friendly dancing." Alphys said.

"Yeah, you're right. Hey, you think that Penny kid might be friends with Mettaton? I mean, Ruby told me earlier that she was a robot, so maybe the two will get along." Undyne said.

"Hmm... maybe Mettaton could use someone to help him. And he might need a friend like her." Alphys said.

"So yes?"

"Yes."

[that night, at the ball]

Ruby was really wishing she hadn't worn high heels. "Oh, you look so cute!" Yang said.

"I am going to have a serious discussion with Weiss about how she fights with these." Ruby said, trying not to fall.

"Well, it's not really about fashion that makes the person, right?" Undyne said behind her.

"Oh, hey guys. You two dancing together?" Ruby said.

"Yeah. We haven't really connected lately with the busy week." Alphys said.

"Oh wow. Didn't know that about you two." Yang said, her face a little hot.

"Eheheheh. Forgot to tell you, didn't we? Sorry." Alphys said.

"No, it's fine. I don't judge someone on their sexual preference." Yang said.

"Well, it's weird when you put it like that." Undyne said.

"Forget it. Go on, you love birds, the dance floor won't dance itself." Yang said, the two going ahead.

"I think I'll just hang out with Kiki." Ruby said.

"Why? You both got two left feet?" Yang said.

"Don't even suggest it. You know my preference. She's just nice to be around." Ruby said.

"Whatever." Yang said.

In the room, Ruby could see Toriel and Asgore sitting at a table with Asriel and another girl. Ruby walked over to the group. "Hey Asriel. How's it hangin?" Ruby said.

"Oh, hey Ruby! We were just talking about you." Asriel said.

"Mind if I have a seat?" Ruby asked.

"Go ahead." Asgore said, pulling out a chair, which Ruby took.

"So who's this?" Ruby asked, gesturing to the girl.

"Oh, right. Ruby, this is Pira Hecali. Pira, this is Ruby Rose." Asriel said.

"Hello Ruby. Asriel talks about you very much at Signal. Heck, you're practically a star there." Pira said.

"Well, thanks. Good to see my little buddy's making friends." Ruby said, bumping Asriel's shoulder playfully.

"Heh, yeah. Pira's one of the nicest people at Signal, aside from a few others." Asriel said.

"Well, I make sure no one picks on him and calls him a monster freak, like many did the first day he was at Signal." Pira said.

"Wow. Well, things can only get better, right?" Ruby said.

"I swear, those jerks never change, even when they say they do." Pira scowled.

"Well, let's turn the topic to something nicer. The guys on PAUS almost have their weapons complete." Ruby said.

"Oh cool. I hope they can handle the Grimm." Asriel said.

"I'm sure they can handle them." Asgore said.

"Yeah, they're true fighters, even Sans. Although, he doesn't fight very much, as it 'takes too much effort in his laziness routine.'" Ruby said.

Everyone laughed. "That does sound like Sans." Toriel chuckled.

"Heard my name. What's up?" Sans said.

"Oh, hey Sans." Ruby said.

"Hey Asriel. Good to see ya. How's Signal treating ya?" Sans said.

"It's good. A few bumps, but it's fine otherwise." Asriel said.

"Never easy in the start. It'll get better, trust me kiddo." Sans winked.

After a while, Ruby excused herself and went over to the punch table, getting herself a drink. While there, Jaune came by and got some punch as well.

"Well, to the socially awkward." Jaune said, raising his cup, which Ruby raised hers to.

"Sorry about Weiss. She can be a little rude." Ruby said.

"Ah, it's fine. I mean, Neptune's a cool guy. I mean, blue hair. Don't see that every day." Jaune said.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Ruby asked.

"Weiss went to the ball with Neptune, didn't she?" Jaune said.

"No. She went alone." Ruby said, pointing to Weiss.

Jaune looked over to see Weiss in some sort of depression. Meanwhile, Neptune and his friends laughed at what Jaune assumed was Weiss. His anger was clearly visible and he snarled. "Hold my punch." Jaune said in a serious tone. Ruby took his punch in her free hand, taking a quick sip.

Soon, Kerási came up and stood next to Ruby, taking a cup of punch. "Socially awkward club?" Kerási asked.

"Yup. Definitely. Welcome to it." Ruby said.

Kerási looked at the other glass of punch in Ruby's hand. "Who's is that?"

"Jaune's." Ruby replied.

Kerási nodded and took a sip. Soon, Ozpin stepped next to them.

"Not one for dancing?" Ozpin asked.

The two shook their heads.

"Well, dancing isn't for everyone. Really, when you think about it, dancing isn't too different from fighting. Two partners interlocked, one wrong move able to break the cycle. Maybe a step on the foot, or a slip, or some other simple mistake." Ozpin said.

"Huh, now that you mention it, you're right." Ruby said. "Never saw it like that."

"Doesn't change the fact that I can't dance to save my life." Kerási joked.

"Well, some forms of battle are difficult to master, some come naturally." Ozpin said.

"True. Though a natural warrior isn't really something I believe in." Kerási said.

Ozpin soon left, leaving the two in awkward silence. Ruby put down the two cups and went to the overlook with her sister. "You know, I think we needed this." Yang said.

"Yeah. I'm sure we can take on whatever life has to throw at us." Ruby said. They then heard laughter and looked at the source.

"Um... except for that." Yang snickered.

"Yeah, not that." Ruby agreed.

After a while, Ruby looked around at the ball room. Undyne and Alphys were dancing, Jaune and Pyrrha, Toriel and Asgore, Blake and Sun, Weiss and Neptune. The rest were just sitting on the sides. To her side, Papyrus and Sans were standing next to her. "This ball was very relaxing." Papyrus said.

"Yeah, it was quite a ball." Sans joked.

"Should have seen that coming." Ruby sighed.

The three stood in silence until some rustling outside got Ruby's attention. Sans looked over and saw what she was looking at. The two looked at each other and nodded, going over to see what the commotion was. Ruby now actually recognized that Sans was now wearing a clip on bow tie on his shirt, which she mentally sighed to.

They snuck in the shadows and soon came up to the info tower, where they saw multiple unconscious guards. Ruby and Sans both called in their weapons and snuck inside. There, they took the elevator to the top. Once at the top, they took a defensive stance and checked for enemies.

"Hello? Anyone there?" Ruby said.

"Right here." Sans joked.

"Very funny." Ruby said. At the last statement, a woman rose from behind a computer desk. She wore a mask, so it was difficult for the two to identify the woman.

Before either could say something, the woman sent a vortex of fire at them, which they barreled away from. Ruby shot at her, but she deflected each bullet. Sans summoned Gaster Blaster and fired at the woman, who dodged away from the laser and tried blasting Sans, who seemed to take the hit, but soon was outside the blast radius.

The woman seemed to predict what event would happen next before the two could and waited for it. Soon, Ironwood came from the elevator, drawing their attention, which allowed for the woman to make her escape.

"Where did she go?" Ruby said.

"Must've slipped away when we weren't looking." Sans said.

They turned back to Ironwood, who seemed to have a displeased expression. They knew they were in for hell now.

[the next day, with Eric]

"Why can't this be more like Vacuo? Interesting stuff was happening left and right there. Here, it's basically nothing interesting." Eric said.

"Maybe we should go somewhere a little more interesting. Vale isn't the only area in Remnant, and there's plenty of crime to give ourselves a good reputation from." Flowey said, leaning against a wall.

"You're right. If we take care of crime, they'll repay us with the criminals' souls. Excellent plan, as always." Eric said.

"When you're striving to become a god, you must know how to form plans. Now, to get to a crime filled area." Flowey said.

"Maybe a city in Mistral? I read the news and they seem to be struggling with some crime." Eric said.

"Very well. We shall take a transport to Mistral and get the other five. Rather, I have planned on taking another human soul, so we will need six more. Fortunately, I have a candidate in mind. It will not be you, so you can rest easy for now." Flowey said.

"Noted. Now let's go to Mistral. They won't expect us to go somewhere so alert, so let's go." Eric said.

The two smiled and went to the port to go to Mistral, where they would get five souls.

[meanwhile, with Asriel]

Asriel had woken up, going to the showers to get cleaned. Once he dressed himself, he looked in the mirror to get his fur arranged. One thing he notice was different was his face. Or rather, his eyes.

They were silver now.

A/N

Hey guys, hope you liked the chapter! It seems our fellow rivals are far from out, so look forward to that! Also, I should explain what Flowey's transformation is based off of. It is based on the transformation of Chaos from Sonic Adventure. I know, call me a child, but that game is my childhood. But yes, I see OF as Perfect Chaos, or at least a more badass version of it. Anyway, enough to with the Sonic references, thank you everyone for sticking around to chapter twenty! I honestly never thought this story would get this popular in one month! So once again I have all of you to thank. If it wasn't for you guys, I would never have gotten this far. I know I sound like a cheesy Youtuber thanking his/her subscribers, but I get emotional at times like these. I love making this story and I hope you guys love reading it. Also, as celebration for this milestone, I'm going to let you in on something. At the end of the month, this fanfic is finally getting a cover photo! That's right, my friend is nearly finished with the photo, sorry for the wait, but she ran into some... problems. So make sure to give her many thanks when it's released. Anyway, sorry for the long Author Note, see ya next chapter!


	21. Chapter 21: Mission Select

Chapter 21: Mission Select

Everything was far from peaceful the next day. Team RWBY and PAUS were restless wanting to find out what happened to their teammates. Soon, Ruby and Sans returned, both teams trying not to hug the two.

"So what happened?" Undyne asked.

"Well, that's a long story." Sans said.

"Short version is, someone went into the tower, we pursued, and ended up having a confusion with Ironwood. But we got things sorted out." Ruby explained.

"That's pretty accurate." Sans said.

"Well, all that matters is that you two are okay." Alphys said.

"Yeah, thank God that person didn't do anything to you two." Yang said.

As things were getting peaceful, Toriel could be heard outside, calling for the two teams, mainly Ruby. "Ruby! It's Asriel! He's... changed."

The two teams rushed with Toriel to her room, where Asgore and his son were talking, Asriel covering his face. "What's going on?" Ruby asked.

"Ruby... I know who's soul kept me here." Asriel said, sniffling.

"Who was it?" Ruby asked.

"You." Asriel replied, showing his eyes. Through the bloodshot in his eyes from crying, Ruby saw his irises were now changed from the original color to... silver, like hers.

Ruby's eyes widened and she stepped back, sheer shock nearly making her pass out. "H-h-how? How did I share my soul with you?" Ruby asked.

"I believe it happened when we made physical contact after I shattered the barrier. Your soul itself was generous, giving enough of itself to make me able to keep this form." Asriel guessed.

"That's impossible." Alphys said. "I mean, think of the scientific facts! Physical contact sharing a soul is against half the laws of science!"

"Then how do you explain the fact that his eyes are the same as Ruby's?" Undyne said.

"Yeah! It all points to the same answer!" Papyrus said.

"Ruby, you alright?" Yang asked.

Everyone took notice of how Ruby had frozen up. It was almost like she was a statue. "Hey kiddo, you in there?" Sans said.

Ruby got out of her state of shock and nodded. "I'm alright." Ruby said.

"Need a sec to compose?" Sans asked.

"I'm fine. It's just shocking to hear that my soul was split. But as long as it's in good hands, I'm alright." Ruby said.

Before anyone could reply, a Kiora tried to get their attention. "Sorry to interrupt, but I have a package for a Ruby Rose."

"That's me." Ruby said. Kiora then pulled out a little box and handed it to Ruby.

"There you are. Have a nice day." Kiora said, walking off.

"Something from dad?" Yang asked.

"Looks like it." Ruby replied. She opened the box, which at first nothing came out. When she shook it, two round objects fell out. One uncurled to reveal Toby and the other turned out to be Zwei.

"Zwei!" Ruby cheered. "And he brought Toby! Best package ever!"

"He brought two dogs through the mail? In that box?" Undyne said.

"He does things like this all the time. Mainly as a reminder of home." Yang said.

"How does he fit two dogs in that?" Alphys asked.

"Don't ask. Even we don't know." Ruby said.

"Hold on, there's a note. 'Going away for business, leaving the two dogs in your care.'" Yang read.

"And how are we supposed to feed them?" Weiss asked.

Yang shook the box a little more and an avalanche of dog food cans poured out on Zwei and Toby.

"How the heck does he do this?!" Alphys said, taking the box and putting her hand in it to se if it was larger on the inside.

"Please make sure they don't touch my stuff." Blake said, getting as far from the dogs as possible.

Just then, the announcements went off. "All students please report to the auditorium. Again, all students, to the auditorium."

Everyone went off expect for Ruby, thinking of what to do with the two dogs. Papyrus noticed this and stayed back. "What are you thinking?"

"Maybe... if we could take them with us..." Ruby then visibly came up with an idea. She gave a sly look to Papyrus.

"What are you-" Papyrus asked, but then saw what she was thinking. "Ah. Isn't that a little irresponsible?"

"Yup. Very." Ruby said.

"Awesome! Got a spare bag?" Papyrus said.

Soon, the two arrived at the auditorium, both of them putting their bags next to the pile of bags. They joined their teams and waited for instructions. Soon, Glynda came up and told everyone to be quiet. Once they did, she stepped back from the microphone and Ozpin came up.

"Thank you all for coming. Students of Vacuo, Mistral, Atlas, and Vale. We are gathered her today to discuss a very troubling matter. First off, the activity of the White Fang grows more troubling each day. And second, the White Fang isn't the only worry we have right now. Some may have heard of it, but for those who have not, I will inform you. A stolen Atlastian project, 3R1C, was stolen by the White Fang. Now, it has regained consciousness and is helping another enemy. The name of the enemy is classified. You will be taking missions to scout, provide recon, and slay Grimm in numerous areas where criminal activity is either suspected or confirmed. It may take a day, it may take a week, or it may take a whole month. No matter how long it takes, do your best. You will be accompanied by a staff member, who will ensure that you stay on the mission and make sure you aren't killed. That is all."

The crowds dispersed and went to panels with missions. The two teams went to a panel with the mission 'search and destroy.' "Mountain Glenn, near Mt. Ebott, clearing of Grimm and searching for White Fang activity." Ruby read.

"Sounds like our kind of mission." Yang said.

Ruby put her scroll to the panel to take the mission, but it said that they were restricted from taking the mission. "Well great." Undyne said.

"Well, we could go there anyway." Ruby said.

"I suspected you would choose this mission. I was hoping the restriction would make you choose another mission." Ozpin said.

"Well, it sounded interesting." Papyrus said.

"I see. And I assume you would go to Mountain Glenn anyway, whether it be mailing yourselves there or another method." Ozpin said.

"Eheheheh, what makes you say that?" Ruby said nervously.

"And I assume I won't find out why people say there were sightings of fighting in the docks, something about rose pedals dancing and gunfire waking the neighborhood. And I guess I won't find out how you found that 3R1C unit. Maybe you found him taking a nap on the curb, or maybe you got him another way." Ozpin said.

The whole group was now trying to put on their best poker face.

"Regardless, I assume you'll take the mission whether I do something or not. So instead of waiting for you to break the rules, why don't I just bend them a little?" Ozpin said, tapping at his scroll. Soon, the panel accepted the team's request.

"We won't let you down, sir." Ruby said.

"I know you won't. But be warned that Mountain Glenn is known for it's large amount of Grimm infestations and for being cursed by Mt. Ebott for having many Grimm attacks." Ozpin warned.

"Noted. Thanks for the heads up!" Papyrus said.

With that, the two teams gathered their bags and went to the port. "I wonder who's going to be with us." Weiss said.

The teacher they didn't expect was waiting for them. "Hello teams! Who's ready to slay some Grimm?" Oobleck said.

[meanwhile, Mistral, Eric and Flowey]

"Crime here is more common than Vale, but it's still damn hard to find." Eric sighed.

"An increase of sightings is better than nothing. Count your blessings." Flowey said.

"And the amount of blessings I have. If any more bad luck happened to me, I would rather die." Eric said.

"That's what made you strong. If it weren't for me, you'd be chained up in a bunker screaming for vengeance." Flowey said.

"Touché." Eric said. "Well, it's getting dark and I need some sleep. Hunting for crime is hard work. Now I know how cops feel." Eric said, yawning.

"Fine. We can't take a hotel since we clearly stand out, so let's stay in the shadows. Maybe a rooftop." Flowey said.

"Good enough for me. I've slept in a crate in the White Fang, so this shouldn't be that much worse." Eric said. They then went up to a rooftop and rested, while Flowey went underground. He found it more relaxing underground when he rested.

That night, Eric dreamed of the night of happening. The village was burning, White Fang goons slaying innocent men and women, taking the children and making them watch their loved ones die in front of them. Soon, the children were taken and thrown in the fire. Finally, one remained. Him. His entire left side caught fire. He screamed in agony. Even as a kid, his screams were able to give nightmares to even the most hardened men. Before he died, a shadow extinguished the flames and took him, the White Fang simply thinking he died. Then, it faded to a lab, scientists putting metal on him, cutting off useless parts of him to make room for more useful parts. All the while, he screamed in pure agony. They finally put him to sleep to stop the screaming. On the arm, they put multiple devices that Eric couldn't begin to understand the meaning of.

Then, it faded to a raid. The White Fang took Eric and began wiping his memories, shoving a USB drive into his metal skull. Soon, his eyes went red for a second, then regained color, and he took the scientists with his gravity and threw multiple sharp objects into their torsos. He then bowed to the members.

"How may I serve you?" He said.

"Serve us by destroying this lab. Bury it." The masked leader said.

He nodded and had the members evacuate. He then controlled gravity and sent the lab into space. All that was left was a crater of where the lab once was. The dream shifted to something he's never seen. A giant creature made of vines. Before he could do anything, multiple vines impaled him, everything going dark.

Eric jumped up and raised his left arm, only to find no enemy in sight. He sighed and lay down of his back, looking at the stars. The last part of his dream worried him. Was Flowey going to betray him? It was possible, but he was strong. He couldn't be defeated that easily. But yet... his system wasn't perfect. He was easily defeated by that skeleton. How could he hope to defeat a god?

Eric shook his head. "Get it together, Eric. You have a debt to settle. I can't be distracted by the future. Five souls. That was the deal." Eric said.

But no matter how hard he tried, from trying to forget to erasing it from his memory, the vision always came back up. He knew what he had to do. He hated to admit it, but it was the only way.

He had to betray Flowey before he was betrayed.

A/N

Hey guys, hope you liked this chapter. If you did, you know what to do. Also, I will be trying to insert OCs soon, but it's hard to right now. So sorry if you submitted an OC and haven't seen it yet. I promise I will get to it. Anyway, now down to the dbz ending. It looks like Eric is having doubts on Flowey. As well, team RWBY and PAUS are about to head to Mountain Glenn. Will the two sides' paths cross? Will they stop Flowey before he gets the six souls? And what fate awaits for them? Find out next time on dra- I mean Rose of the Underground!


	22. Chapter 22: Mountain Glenn

Chapter 22: Mountain Glenn

A/N

Hey guys, before I start this chapter, just want to say thank you for staying with me, and I will probably have a few OCs coming in in a few chapters, so watch out for those. With that out of the way, CHAPTER! START!

The two teams didn't know if they should be surprised or glad or both that Oobleck was going with them. "Mr. Oobleck? You're our guide?" Weiss said in slight shock.

"Our mission, as you may know, is to go to Mountain Glenn, a facility that has long since collapsed, rumored to have been from the essence that lingered from Mount Ebott, and it is Dr. Oobleck to you. I didn't get my degree for nothing, you know." Oobleck said.

"I don't know about the whole Mt. Ebott being the cause of the collapse thing, but it does sound dangerous. I'm convinced." Undyne said.

"Excellent. At least one of you is eager to get to the mission. Now, come along teams, the city will not survey itself!" Oobleck said, rushing off.

"Sometimes, I wonder what he would be like at normal speed." Papyrus said.

"You mean him crashing? Nah, that'll never happen." Ruby said.

The group chuckled as they went to the bullhead that would take them to Mountain Glenn, but they stopped when they saw a familiar face coming back to Beacon.

"Hey Velvet. I thought your team was supposed to be out for two more weeks." Ruby said.

"We were, but... there were just so many." Velvet said.

"Well, you weren't hurt, were you?" Yang asked.

"Of course not. We were able to fend them off for a while, but soon Coco had to order our retreat. It wasn't from cowardice, but rather to protect us." Velvet said.

"Well, there's a difference from retreating from an impossible battle than a lost one. You did the best you could." Undyne said.

"Thank you. I wish you guys luck in your mission." Velvet said, walking off with her teammates.

The group walked to the bullhead and got on, setting off to Mountain Glenn.

[Meanwhile, with Eric and Flowey]

Eric and Flowey decided to keep a low profile, meaning Flowey not being seen. Though the world of monsters was now on the surface, the sight of a walking mass of vines would probably give them some unwanted attention.

Meanwhile, Eric had done the liberty of making soul cases to keep the souls he captured and bring them to Flowey once they met up. Though, his dream still bothered him. The thoughts kept on flowing through his head.

'Will he actually betray me? If he does, can I stop him? Unlikely, since with six human souls he would be near unstoppable. But what happens if he gets all seven?' Eric thought, then shaking his head. 'Get it together, Eric. You have a mission, stop wondering about these pointless scenarios. If he does become a god, maybe he could... no, impossible. She died long ago, I could never hope to see her again. That is why the White Fang must die.'

As he walked on, he sensed some tension in the air, and not the good kind. He knew a criminal was nearby.

'Perfect.' Eric thought. He leaped to the rooftops and searched around, looking for the person he sensed. Soon, he spotted him, or rather two. Two men armed with many guns robbing a store. He responded and rushed in, gravity locking them in place.

"Now now, men. Didn't your mothers tell you not to take what isn't yours?" Eric said.

The two men tried to raise their weapons to shoot Eric, but he was faster, taking his sword and running it through them. He acted quickly and took out the soul containers, stealing both their souls. Before anyone in the store could say anything, he went back out and disappeared into the shadows.

[Mountain Glenn, half an hour later]

The group had just landed at Mountain Glenn and were about to leave when Oobleck noticed Ruby and Papyrus had brought their knapsacks, despite being told to leave them. "Ruby, Papyrus, I thought I told you to leave your bagging at Beacon."

"Well, you haven't told us to listen to you yet." Ruby said.

"Fair point. Very well, leave your bags here and we shall retrieve them after the mission." Oobleck said.

"Well, we might need them for..." Papyrus said.

"You two, what could possible in those bags that is so important to-" Oobleck asked, but was answered by Toby and Zwei barking and poking their heads out. "We are on a mission in a Grimm infested mountain rumored to be cursed, and you brought... a dog."

"Uh, two to be precise." Papyrus said.

"Spectacular!" Oobleck said, grabbing Zwei. "Dogs have a strong sense of tracking and smell, allowing them to easily track down clues and enemies, making them a perfect partner for a hunter!" Oobleck said, holding out Zwei.

The two teams were silent for a moment before Ruby and Papyrus smiled. "I'm a genius." They said in unison.

"Sir, shouldn't we get back on track?" Weiss said.

"Ah, yes. The mission." Oobleck said, dropping Zwei. "This particular area is famous for Beowolves, so be on the alert." As he said that, a Beowolf came into view, seemingly searching for his lunch. "Look! Over there. If there is one Beowolf, there are bound to be more. They tend to travel in packs, so the rest of them shouldn't be too far behind." As if on queue, some more Beowolves appeared. "Ah, there they are. And now they've seen us."

"Wait, what?" Weiss said.

"AND NOW THEY'VE SEEN US!" Oobleck repeated.

Sure enough, the pack of Beowolves were charging at the group. The teams reacted, drawing their weapons. Ruby went in, slashing a Beowolf in half. Papyrus followed, crushing a Beowolf's skull with Meatball. Weiss froze some Beowolves in their place and allowed Undyne to cut them all down. Alphys used Thunder Razor to create multiple waves of electricity and fry seven Beowolves. Blake charged at one and used her semblance to get behind it, inserting the blade into the Beowolf's spine.

Yang simply took out a few Beowolves with either punching or shooting, a little bit of both at times. Soon, the pack was nothing but a pile of decaying corpses on the ground.

"Excellent work, teams. However, we aren't out of the woods yet, for many other Grimm still linger here." Oobleck said.

During the hunting and fighting, Oobleck looked around the area, scanning the buildings for clues and hints. Meanwhile, the two teams battled and slew and shot multiple Grimm. Eventually, Oobleck interviewed them.

"So, team PAUS, why did you become a hunter team? You already have your own history with humans, so why do you work with us?" Oobleck asked.

"That's exactly why. We want monsters and humans to work together rather than fight and bicker." Undyne said.

"Yeah! Peace between the two species would make Remnant a way better place!" Papyrus said.

"Honestly, I just kind of roll with it." Sans said.

"I want to learn more about the humans and their culture, along with atoning for the deeds I did. I think helping the humans would allow me to forgive myself." Alphys said.

"I see. You all have your own reasons for fighting." Oobleck said.

A while later, after another fight with some Beowolves, Oobleck approached Weiss. "Ms. Schnee. You are part of a wealthy and famous family, and not to mention powerful. Why go through the trouble of becoming a huntress?" Oobleck asked.

"Well, just as you said, my family is known for being strong. I want to keep that reputation and grow strong." Weiss said.

"I see." Oobleck said. He went over to Blake, who opened a door that sent out multiple baby Nevermores, shooting them out of the air. "And you, Ms. Belladonna. You clearly have some secrets that would weigh any normal woman down, but you continue to fight. Why is that?"

"The world is corrupt. I want to fix it. The world won't be nice to you if you simply do nothing." Blake replied.

Oobleck nodded in acknowledgement. He went over to Yang, who was preoccupied cleaning her weapon. "And you, Yang. Why do you fight as a huntress?" Oobleck asked Yang.

"Well, I just kind of roll with life. I figured being a huntress would let me have a bit of fun. And if I end up saving a few lives, then it's a win-win, ya know." Yang replied.

After one last battle, the team grew tired and their muscles(or bones, in Papyrus and Sans' case) grew heavy. "Alright, good work today teams. The hour grows late and we must find some shelter to rest. But first, Ruby, I wish to speak to you." Oobleck said.

"Sure, what is it?" Ruby said.

"Have you been wondering why I was interrogating your teammates?" Oobleck asked.

"No, but I was wondering... why did you become a hunter?" Ruby asked.

"Ruby, my dear, look around you. What do you see?" Oobleck said.

"Uh... ruined buildings?" Ruby half answered.

"I see a city that could have been great. I see countless lives that could have been saved. I became a hunter so that these ruins would not fade, along with the people who lived here, but make them live on in history." Oobleck said.

"Oh. So you're, like, a history hunter?" Ruby said.

"Precisely, but that does not mean I do not fight." Oobleck said, then turning his attention to something in the distance. "Over there. Do you see those large black masses? Those are Goliaths. They leave lived for as long as anyone can remember. And during that time, they learn, grow intelligent. That means they learn how to kill man more efficiently."

"Then why are they still around here?" Ruby asked.

"They are surveying. They study humans to find their weaknesses and then kill. However, they know better than to charge at a fully armed army, thus stay quiet until they know they can finish off the humans. As Grimm live longer, they learn more. It's quite terrifying... and also magnificent. Now, let us return to the others. I assume they have set up base by now." Oobleck said.

Back with the others, they had set up a camp fire and rolled out eight sleeping bags for everyone. Soon, Ruby came rushing up and settled at the fire. "Ooh, warmth." Ruby said, warming her hands to the fire.

"Very well done, teams. This will be one of many bases we will set up here. Now, who will be taking the first watch?" Oobleck said.

"Yo." Ruby said, raising her hand. Oobleck nodded and settled in, sitting in a corner nearby. Ruby brushed her hands and called over Zwei, taking a sniping position in a look over nearby. The others got into their bags and tried going to sleep, but something emitted from nearby. Some girl screaming.

The teams instantly got up and got their weapons ready, heading toward the scream. Soon, they found the source. It was a teenager being chased by two Beowolves. Ruby took the first shot and blew off the head of one of them, Undyne throwing a spear and killing the other one. The girl looked at them, eyes filled with terror.

"Are you alright?" Undyne asked the girl, helping her up.

"Y-yes." The girl replied, visibly shaken.

Ruby observed the girl. She was a little taller than Ruby with purple hair put into a ponytail. Her eyes were also purple and her clothes were slightly torn, but still protective. She wore a pink and purple jacket, unzipped, showing a white and blue tank top. Her jeans were blue as well, with a few holes in the legs near the knees. Her shoes were purple and white, also rather worn. She didn't appear to have a weapon.

"It's okay, you're safe with us. What's your name?" Undyne said.

"My name... is Kieta. Kieta Ameix." Kieta said.

"Alright, listen. We're going to take you back to our base. There, you'll be safe. Okay?" Undyne said.

Kieta nodded shakily and the group went back to the base.

"So, you have found a girl here? What is she doing here unarmed?" Oobleck asked.

"I... I was searching for my brother John. I know he isn't far." Kieta said.

"Alright, in the morning, we will help you find your brother and continue with our mission. For now, everyone get some rest and Ruby will take first watch." Oobleck said.

Everyone nodded and got back into their bags. Ruby, however, went over to Kieta. "Do you know what your brother looks like?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, but he must have changed after ten years. The information I have with him probably isn't relevant by now." Kieta said.

"Alright, well I promise you we'll find him. Just relax and get some rest." Ruby said.

Kieta nodded and pulled out some cloth from her knapsack, which served as a blanket for her. She took a nearby stone and rest her head on it.

'I wonder if she always lived like that.' Ruby thought. She turned and got perched on her overlook again, looking through her scope, surveying the area.

A few minutes later, team PAUS was asleep, but team RWBY was still wide awake. "Hey Blake, you still up?" Yang whispered to Blake.

"Yeah." Blake said.

"Are you bothered by what Oobleck asked?" Yang asked.

"Sort of. And by why Kieta was out there." Blake said.

"I agree. If she could have survived this long, she should at least have a weapon." Weiss said.

"I agree, but did you mean what you said when Oobleck asked you why you are a huntress?" Yang asked.

"Yes and no. Ever since my father took over the Schnee dust company, the productivity became questionable. The company isn't the same as it used to be, and I refuse to let him be the end of it." Weiss said.

"What about you Blake?" Yang asked.

"I meant what I said, but now... I see that's not the only reason. I want to face my fears and overcome them, stop running away." Blake said.

"Blake, you are not a coward." Yang said.

"But I am! I ran away when Torchwick took control of the White Fang. I ran when you found out I was a Faunus. Even my semblance! I leave a clone of myself to take the hit while I run away." Blake said.

"Blake, stop being so hard on yourself. At least you have a reason to be a huntress. I just want to have fun, nothing more. Ruby always wanted to be like the heroes in the stories, saving the day and never asking for anything in return." Yang said.

"She's just a kid." Weiss said.

"We're all kids." Blake said.

"Not anymore. I mean, look at us. Armed to the teeth in the middle of a ruined city." Yang said.

"It's the life we chose." Blake said.

"Hey, could you keep it down? Some of us actually want some sleep." Papyrus said.

"We should get some sleep." Yang said. The others nodded and laid down, going to sleep.

Half an hour later, Yang had taken the second watch and everyone was asleep. However, Toby and Zwei began to get up and wander off. "Zwei!" Ruby whispered. She looked over to see Sans had been woken up by Toby going off. They didn't have to say anything as they both knew what they had to do. They ran after the dogs and looked around to see they were both using an old construction site as a restroom. "Zwei, this is a wasteland, you literally could have done that anywhere." Ruby said.

"Well, at least they didn't wander too far." Sans said.

"Yeah, but-" Ruby said, but instantly stopped talking as another, more gruff voice emitted from the distance.

"I heard something over hear!" The voice said. The two grabbed the dogs and jumped to cover. They got a peak of the men to see they were White Fang members.

"I don't see anything." The other man said.

"I could have sworn I heard barking." The first man said.

"It probably was just your head playing tricks. Come on, let's get done with our shifts. This place gives me the creeps." The other man said.

Ruby looked over to Sans to see he was having the same idea. "Follow?" Ruby asked.

"Cat and mouse." Sans said.

Ruby rolled her eyes at his half joke and signaled him to stay here until she gave the signal to follow. She dashed silently too and from one side of the street to the other. Soon, she stopped behind a building corner and held out Zwei. "Have they gone in? One bark for yes." Ruby whispered.

There was a moment of nothing until Zwei finally barked after they closed a door. Ruby gave the signal and Sans followed. "Why are the White Fang here?" Sans asked.

"I don't know, but this might be something big. Let me call the others." Ruby said, taking out her scroll. Unfortunately, the signal was terrible here, making it impossible to contact the others. "Crap. Okay, let's head back." Ruby said.

As they went back, cracks began to appear around Ruby. Sans was too slow to save her, as she fell through the hole in the street. He tried to use his ability on her to lift her back up, but instead accidentally got Zwei. He tried again, but soon she fell out of his range.

"Ruby!" Sans exclaimed. He did the one thing he's never done in a long time: run. He rushed back to the others, along with Zwei and Toby. When he got there, he was gasping for breath. "Wow... that was... more... exhausting... than I... Expected." Sans gasped.

"Sans! Where the hell were you?!" Papyrus said.

"It's Ruby. She... fell under... the town." Sans said.

"WHAT?!" Everyone except Oobleck and Kieta shouted.

"Shh! Quiet! You'll attract every Grimm in the area if you continue to be this loud! Then it'll be saving Ruby that'll be the least of our worries." Oobleck said.

"Grimm aren't all that's here. The White Fang are also here." Sans said, finally catching his breath.

"The W-w-white Fang?" Kieta said.

"Quickly! Take us to where Ruby fell! We might find a way down!" Oobleck said.

Soon, Sans had led them to the new hole in the city. "Holy Dust! There's a whole city down there!" Weiss said.

"Of course. Of course of course of course! That's it! The people of the town didn't get mercilessly slaughtered, they were slaughtered underneath the town! There's an underground railway to Vale that served as a transport for the resources, but it broke through nests of Grimm, making travel harder than expected. That's how the Grimm invaded the city and inhabited it!" Oobleck said.

"Wait, do you mean the White Fang is down there?" Undyne asked.

"I cannot be sure, but it is very likely. Then that means if Ruby has fallen down there, she's in grave danger." Oobleck said.

"Oh hell. So what's the plan?" Undyne asked.

"Simple. If Ruby is down there, we must hurry and rescue her." Oobleck said, extending his canteen to a flamethrower of sorts.

[Meanwhile, Eric]

Eric had given Flowey the two souls he had retrieved and was now searching the Remnet for any criminal activity in Mistral. However, he found something that was far from what he was expecting. Beacon academy had posted found civilians in mission areas, and one of them was... her. His heart skipped a beat and his eyes widened.

"No way. She-she can't be alive. She died in the fire, and yet-" Eric said. But there was no denying it. It was her.

Kieta, his sister.

A/N

Hey guys, bet you didn't expect that ending. Then again, maybe you did. Whatever, still, sorry for missing double update Saturday. I got busy with other things, like catching up with old friends and such. Anyway, hope you guys had a nice Easter break, and I might not update as frequently due to me working on another fanfic. If you guys want to check that out, go right ahead. But anyway, Will Eric finally reunite with his sister? If so, will he be captured again? And what fate hangs in the balance for Vale, the citizens, and more importantly, Ruby? Find out next time on Rose of the Underground!


	23. Chapter 23: No Breaks on Me

Chapter 23: No Breaks on Me

"Flowey, you don't understand! This is my sister! She might be in danger!" Eric said.

"What I do understand is that you want to risk going back into the SAME case you were in when I save your sorry ass. I don't care if this is your sister at stake, if you abandon this cause for someone like that, I won't save you again." Flowey snarled.

Flowey had now taken on a new form. His arms were now more solid and his face was now more vertical, along with growing four eyes. As well, pipes hung from his face and back, probably to support the souls into doing his evil work.

"Look, if she has the same enhancements as me, she might turn against you! She might be a match for your strength!" Eric said.

Flowey thought about this. "Ugh, fine. But know if you get captured again, I will-" Flowey said, but was cut off by more talking in the streets than normal. They saw what everyone was staring at: a pillar of smoke at Vale.

"Son of a taint." Eric said, rushing off.

[one hour earlier, Mountain Glenn underground city]

The group rushed down to the city, taking out all the White Fang that got in their way. Sans summoned Gaster Blaster to take care of a blockade of White Fang, making the remaining scatter. Soon, they saw the railway and Ruby rushing to them. At the same time, the White Fang was firing at her. One shot got her in the leg, making her stumble and fall.

Before anyone could react, Kieta did something unthinkable. She held out her right hand and the White Fang that shot her stopped. In fact, all the White Fang members were halted to a complete stop.

She went over to Ruby and helped her up. "That's for saving me." Kieta said.

"You can stop time? Awesome." Ruby said.

"Not exactly. I simply can stop human thoughts from traveling, pausing them in time. Events of the world still happen, though." Kieta said.

"That is so cool. Wait, so you're like Eric, but instead of controlling gravity-" Ruby said.

"Wait, who's Eric?" Kieta asked, but then doubled over in pain. "Never mind. We have to go."

They ran, the White Fang going back into motion. The two hurried back to the others and Yang hugged Ruby and Kieta. "Thank you for saving my sis." Yang said to Kieta.

"Yeah, no problem." Kieta said.

"Ruby, what is going on down here?" Oobleck asked.

"The White Fang plan on using the railway system to create a breach in Vale." Ruby said.

"That is impossible! The railway system was blocked off years ago." Oobleck said.

As if on queue, the train started to go. "I think they don't care." Yang said.

"Well, that's a problem. Hurry, get into the train cars!" Oobleck said.

No one argued. They rushed to the caboose and got on, checking the contents. "Oh crap. Problem." Undyne said.

Oobleck looked to see her worry. "Oh dear. That is a bomb."

"Yeah, no kidding." Alphys said.

"Everyone, get to the other car! Blake, cut the cable!" Oobleck ordered. However, as Blake was about to cut the cable, it disconnected by itself.

"New problem. It disconnected without my help." Blake said.

Oobleck then checked the car they were on to see another bomb. He ran to the other car to see another one. "They all have bombs!" Oobleck yelled.

As he said that, the train car the teams were on detached, making them rush to the next car. The car that they were on exploded, making giant holes in the tunnel walls, revealing hundreds of Grimm.

"Grimm. Train heading through a blocked off tunnel." Kieta said. She began putting the pieces together. "I think I know their plan. They're using the blasts to lure the Grimm out and open the blockade at the end of the tunnel, making a breach into Vale."

"You're right! Excellent observations, Kieta! The explosions create holes in the tunnel where Grimm nests are, meaning if the end of the tunnel is blocked off, and we're heading at full speed at it... we need to get to the front of the train and stop it!" Oobleck said.

No one argued. They began running across the train cars, but they stopped at the sight of White Fang and some Paladins approaching. "I don't think they want us on here." Ruby said.

"I think we forgot our tickets." Sans said.

"Now is not the time for jokes! We must get past them! Kieta, can you stop them?" Ruby asked.

"I could, but at a closer distance. My ability only allows me to stop their sense of time for a short while until it starts to take a toll on myself." Kieta said.

"Curses. Then it looks like we'll have to fight them the old fashioned way." Oobleck said.

They went in, splitting up into two groups. One went inside the train cars, the other took out the foes on top. Kieta allowed the infiltrate team some time and stopped the foes, letting them slide through and into the cars. Once she let them resume, they seemed confused why half of them were gone.

They regained their senses and charged at the other group, but they were more skilled. The group was Ruby, Oobleck, the two dogs, Undyne, Alphys, and Kieta. Undyne changed Beast Catcher to harpoon mode and fired a spear at the Paladin, making one of it's legs useless and immobilizing it. This gave Ruby her chance to test out a team attack her and Undyne had planned. Undyne changed Ruby's soul color to green and shot spears at her, which Ruby deflected, as well as giving her a boost, allowing her to slash the Paladin in half, the top part falling off the train.

Another Paladin came up, hitting Ruby back to the others. This allowed Oobleck to execute his idea. He lifted Zwei and sent him flying at the Paladin in a fiery ball, shattering the Paladin. Meanwhile, Alphys had deployed the armor she had made for Toby, making him look like Greater Dog. Toby went in, knocking off White Fang members with both the spear and his gauntlet.

"Now that is amazing." Ruby said.

"I based it off of Greater Dog's design, but also made it compact." Alphys said.

"Might come in handy." Ruby smiled.

"Ruby, Undyne, we have things under control here. Go help the others." Oobleck said.

"Yes sir." Ruby and Undyne said. They went off, but Ruby looked back to see Toby and Zwei looking at her with begging eyes. "Go." Ruby said. They lightened up and went to help Oobleck.

"To think dogs could fight like this." Undyne chuckled.

"Yeah. Now let's go help the others." Ruby said.

Meanwhile, in the train cars, Yang, Papyrus, Sans, Weiss, and Blake were running from car to car until coming upon a familiar face. "Go on. This one's mine." Yang said.

"I will assist!" Papyrus said. As they went forward, Yang and Papyrus attacked to give the others time to move ahead. The two approached Neo, weapons drawn, and the fight began.

In the next car, they assumed it was empty until they heard a chainsaw revving up. "Go ahead. I got this." Weiss said.

"I'll just stay here to make sure you don't slip up." Sans said, trying to hide the half joke.

Weiss blocked the chainsaw to let Blake go through. The White Fang grunt chuckled. "Finally, I get to kill a Shnee." Weiss rotated her dust chamber and charged.

In the front of the train, Blake had finally made it. Roman and another White Fang member were in control of the train. "So, kitty cat, you finally made it. And don't think about trying to stop the train, we already cut the breaks on this puppy. I guess you'll take me down either way, so there's no choice I have." Roman said.

Blake unsheathed Gambol Shroud and pointed it at Roman. "I will not let you kill several innocent lives." Blake snarled.

Roman sighed. "I knew you would say something like that. Guess we have to do this the hard way." Then, their fight began.

Back with Yang and Papyrus, they tried everything they had, from attacking from behind to going all out, but Neo seemed to always block their attacks, and showed no sign of letting out. Soon, she let out a pulse with her umbrella, making the two collapse, mainly in exhaustion. Neo observed them to make sure they were unconscious and unsheathed her saber, ready to impale Yang's heart. But before she could, something sent her flying. She looked back to see a masked woman, but not a White Fang. She wore mainly red and black.

She unsheathed her katana, a long red blade which was visibly a powerful weapon. Neo knew this was trouble and vanished. The woman slashed her sword at the air, making a dark red portal. As Yang came conscious, she only caught a slight glimpse at the woman as she went through the portal. She looked to her side to see Papyrus still unconscious.

"Papyrus? Wake up." Yang said, shaking Papyrus.

Papyrus groaned. "Five more minutes."

Yang chuckled. "After we stop this train." Yang picked up Papyrus and went forward.

On the next train car, Weiss and the grunt were having a saber verses chainsaw battle, and Weiss had the upper hand in mobility, but the grunt had the strength in power. Each time Weiss tried to freeze him in place, he just broke through it like it was nothing. He clearly has been training half his life for this moment. Soon, one lucky swing got Weiss off balance and made her vulnerable. As he was about to slice her in half, his soul was shown and turned blue.

"What the-" the grunt said.

"It's a beautiful day outside. Birds are singing... flowers are blooming... on days like these... kids like you..." Sans said, opening his eyes to show his pupils were gone. "Should be burning in hell." Sans then drew Funny Bone and stabbed it through the grunt, throwing him out the train car. His blinked and regained his pupils. "Hey kiddo, you okay?"

"You just... killed him." Weiss said in slight horror.

"Hey, it was either him or you. He would have killed you if I didn't kill him. I'm not happy about it, but I had no other choice." Sans said, helping up Weiss. "Come on, we got a train to stop."

In the front, Blake had finally pinned down Roman, her sword pointed at his throat. "Well, this is bringing back some memories. Why are you fighting us? Do you really think a little bow on your head will let you forget about everything you've done? You're teaming with a girl who would probably kill you for being one of us at one point."

Blake snarled. "You won't scare me with your pointless predictions."

They both heard footsteps coming toward the front. "What's it going to be?" Roman asked, Blake finally having enough and kicking him in the head, knocking him out.

"Blake, you got a way to stop the train yet?" Weiss asked.

"We can't. The brakes are cut. This train isn't going to be easy to stop." Blake said.

They went to the roof to see Ruby and Undyne approaching. "Did you find out how to stop this thing?" Undyne asked.

"No brakes. We got no choice. Everyone, brace for impact." Blake said.

Weiss got an idea and made everyone huddle together, Weiss encasing everyone in ice to absorb the impact.

Soon, Ruby regained consciousness, along with everyone else, to see they were in the center of Vale. Everyone was looking at them, but before they could do anything, a King Taijitu erupted from the hole and went to attack. People and monsters panicked and ran, trying to find cover. Some monsters tried to attack, but ended up either being turned to dust or being seriously injured.

The eight decided to act, taking on the horde of Grimm. Ruby switched Crescent Rose to the new shooter mode, which was able to weaken the Grimm, allowing her to finish it with a vertical slash.

"Everyone, give the citizens time to get away!" Ruby ordered.

"There's no way the eight of us can hold off this many Grimm!" Undyne said.

"Just fight until backup arrives! I'm certain they'll send some form of help!" Ruby said.

As she said that, two Beowolves began attack... other Grimm. "Look! They're fighting each other!" Yang said.

"Time to make some allies!" Kieta said, raising her right hand at an Ursa, who began slashing Creeps into pieces, smashing Beowolves, and throwing boulders at Nevermores.

"You can control minds?!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Oh yeah. Although, it takes much more concentration." Kieta said, releasing her control on the Ursa, allowing Undyne to impale it.

"That is seriously badass." Undyne said.

"Yeah, thanks. Just... need to take a break real quick." Kieta said, sitting on a stone, holding her head as if she had a headache. However, a King Taijitu came from the ground and reared back to eat Kieta.

"Kieta!" Ruby yelled, but she wasn't fast enough. The King Taijitu attacked, and would have eaten her whole, but it stopped half way.

"GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY SISTER, YOU BASTARDS!" A voice boomed. Electricity surged through the King Taijitu and it fell, completely fried, inside and out. The voice showed itself as Eric, his left arm slightly showing metal from the electricity frying through his fake skin.

"Wait, are you-" Kieta said, then realized who it was. "John!" Kieta exclaimed, hugging Eric.

Eric hugged her back, a tear running down his human eye. "Kieta, I'm so happy to see you." Eric said.

Kieta looked back to see everyone aiming at Eric. "Kieta, get away from him!" Weiss said.

"No! He's my brother, don't shoot him!" Kieta said, standing in front of Eric, arms out to protect him.

Everyone was silent for a while, slightly confused. Kieta sighed and took off part of the skin on her right arm, showing metal and wires, just like Eric's. "We're both from the same village. We're twins." Kieta said.

"We were meant to be the greatest protectors of the world, Kieta with the ability to control-" Eric said, but was cut short by Grimm flooding out of the hole.

"Save the story for later! Are you with us or against us?" Yang asked.

"If you are against the White Fang, then I'm happy to help." Eric said.

"Good. Prepare to fight!" Ruby said. And the ten warriors charged into battle, ready to either die or come out victorious.

A/N

And there you have it! Family reunion! I should explain Kieta. She is another of my OCs, the twin sister of Eric, or John as she calls him. Backstory will be explained next chapter. Anyway, they will not be getting the whole highlight of this story, don't worry. I'll give the spotlight to the other OCs as well, so don't worry. Anyway, now for the hypers. It seems the twin cyborgs are now reunited! But what is to happen in the battle? Will all our heroes make it out alive? And what is the Twins' backstory? Find out next time on Rose of the Underground!

Also, Kieta and Eric are based on the two legendaries from Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, or at least their abilities are. Eric controlling space and Kieta controlling time, etc. So, yeah. There's that. 'Kay bye.


	24. Chapter 24: The Breach

Chapter 24: The Breach (RWBY season 2 FINALE)

Last night at Beacon, Jaune is woken up from a call on his scroll. He sees it's Ruby and picks up. "Hello?" Jaune said, who is responded by static and then the call ending. He lays back, confused and worried about Ruby.

The next morning, team JNPR is walking to the mess hall. "I just get this feeling that they're in danger." Jaune said.

"I'm sure they'll be fine. The two teams are really strong. They can take care of themselves." Pyrrha said.

"I hope you're right." Jaune said. They then heard alarms going off in Vale. They looked over at the city to see a column of smoke arising in the middle of the city. "Oh no."

[meanwhile, the center of Vale]

Kieta and Eric worked together to make the Grimm turn on each other, Eric trapping a strong Grimm, Kieta controlling another Grimm and making it kill the Grimm in many horrific ways, from clawing to eating their own, which Kieta realized later was kind of messed up, even for Grimm.

Yang and Alphys punched and clawed through the horde of Grimm, either smashing their skulls or tearing their insides apart. Weiss and Undyne used their battle strategies and tore through wave through wave of Grimm, beheading, impaling, slashing, and penetrating stabs. Ruby and Papyrus knocked Grimm aside with ease, either giving them a face tattoos with spikes or slashing their waists in half. Blake slashed and shot through the Grimm, feigning a successful strike with her clone and returning the strike. Sans simply sat on the roofs and drank from some ketchup while they fought.

"Sans! Stop being a lazybones and flipping help us!" Undyne yelled.

"Fine." Sans sighed, taking a Nevermore down with his ability and letting Kieta control it, making it peak at Beowolves, and finally letting it go, letting Eric decapitate it with his sword, Space Maker. "There, I helped. Happy?"

"Smart Alec." Undyne grumbled.

Soon, some bullheads came in with hunters, team JNPR jumping down to help. "Alright, who's first?" Jaune said, an Ursa jumping down behind him. "Alright, so you're first? No, that's cool." Jaune said, then taking a deep breath and began wailing on it, yelling while he did. Soon, the Ursa fell, and even Jaune was impressed.

Nora slammed the head of a Beowolf in with her hammer, sending it at another Beowolf, who fell under it's ally's corpse. Ren slashed and shot at the Grimm, making quick work of them. Pyrrha went in, slashing with her spear, along side with Undyne. She threw her shield at a Creep, decapitating it.

Kerási soon appeared, combining Cheli Namu and turning it into a double sided naginata. She lunged forward, taking one Beowolf out and throwing it at a Creep, stabbing it through the dead Beowolf. The rest of her team came along, fighting together.

Velvet and her team soon showed up, the team instantly getting to work. Coco went over to a Beowolf and sighed. "You just destroyed my favorite clothing store. Prepare to die." Coco said. The Beowolf roared and slashed at Coco, her blocking the strike with her case and slamming it into the back of the Beowolf's head, snapping it's neck. A flock of Nevermores were about to strike and Velvet began to reveal her weapon, but Coco stopped her. "Come on, you've been charging it the whole semester. Don't waste it here." Coco chuckled, shifting her briefcase to the mini gun mode, shattering Death Stalkers and blasting the Nevermores in half.

"Nice shooting, Coco!" Papyrus said, Coco responding with a thumbs up. Soon, a fleet of Atlas army ships came up and sent down the new guard models. Eventually, Glynda showed up and sealed the breach, letting the hunters and huntresses deal with the remaining Grimm.

As the army arrested Roman, teams RWBY, JNPR, PAUS, and Eric and Kieta sat on a rooftop. Eventually, Kerási joined them, sitting a little distance away from Eric and Kieta, due to her social awkwardness.

"This was a day." Yang sighed.

"Yeah, no kidding. I could use a day off." Undyne chuckled.

"Maybe tomorrow we take the day off?" Ruby said.

Everyone nodded. "Sounds good." Sans said. "I kind of do that anyway."

"I think everyone knows that." Papyrus said, everyone laughing.

"So, now that we're not being attacked, I think now we should tell you our story." Eric said. "Ten years ago, the White Fang raided our home village, taking all valuable possessions, burning every house to the ground, and in the end, using it as their own personal base. At first, I thought I was the only survivor, but now I see my sister, Kieta, survived. My original design in the Atlas lab was to be a prototype for Ironwood, but when they found Kieta, they changed my design to being the ultimate weapon, made to bring peace to Remnant."

"But..." Kieta said. "The White Fang raided the lab, taking Eric as their puppet and leaving me to die, since they saw no potential in me. I wandered the forests alone, surviving only by my enhancements and my will to find Eric. Although, there was a third unit that the Atlas abandoned from it becoming a renegade, going rouge. They disengaged it and threw it out, making us it's replacement. Though, it might be out there still."

"But back to the story," Eric said. "I was used as a weapon by the White Fang, as Blake may remember. She saw me at the warehouse on my presentation night. Then, I was captured, and rescued from Beacon by Flowey. Then, I was in his debt. He promised to destroy the White Fang if I helped him collect souls."

At this, PAUS and Ruby shuddered. "To think he is still out there, collecting souls." Undyne said.

"Let's hear the rest of the story." Ruby said.

"The night you guys found me," Kieta said, "Grimm attacked me. I tried to turn them against themselves, but they somehow resisted. I panicked and ran, screaming for help. Then, you guys saved me. I was horrified that you might want to capture and use me like what happened with John. But instead, you helped me. I though I would trust you until I found John. But now that I found him..."

"Yeah, we don't know what to do." Eric said.

"But how can we trust you? How do we know you're still not working for-" Weiss said.

"Don't even say it." Eric snarled. "I knew he would betray me eventually and I planned to kill him before he got the sixth soul. He is a beast that shouldn't awaken. He is a devil, a demon. I know who lives inside him: a genocidal maniac."

Alphys seemed to know. "Chara."

"Who?" Undyne asked.

"Chara, the other being that was infused with Asriel. Chara was the first human to fall into the underground. But what stood him out was he hated humanity and wanted them all dead. She was the soul Asriel absorbed to go to the surface." Alphys explained.

"How do you know all this?" Papyrus asked.

"Well, as a royal scientist, Asgore did give me some special information on the Underground's past." Alphys said.

"Makes sense." Papyrus shrugged.

"Well." Yang yawned. "This was fun. If story time is over, I think we should go on back."

Everyone nodded and started to go, but Ruby stopped. "Wait. What about Eric and Kieta?" Ruby asked.

Everyone looked to see Eric and Kieta with pleading eyes. "We have nowhere to go. No one to care for us except for ourselves. Please, take us to Beacon." Eric said.

"And let in the most dangerous people in the-" Weiss said, but was cut off by Eric falling to his knees.

"Please. I don't care if I'm stuck in a bunker, but please, at least let Kieta come. I can't afford to lose her. I'm begging you, and I've never begged before." Eric said.

Everyone was taken back by this. Even Kieta was stunned. "I got an idea." Ruby said, taking out her scroll. She went always a bit and came back in a few moments. "I contacted Ozpin. He said he'll have to ask you two some questions before he can decide, but he says he'll give you a chance."

Eric then hugged Ruby. "Thank you." Eric said, letting out a tear of relief.

"Hey, don't worry. What are friends for?" Ruby said.

Eric stepped back. "Friends? You really want to be friends with me, even though I worked with two of the most dangerous people?"

"Yeah! You were willing to be locked up in a bunker just so that your sister could be okay. You have a good heart." Ruby said.

"She tends to see the good in most people." Yang clarified.

"Thank you... friend." Eric said.

[one hour later, Beacon]

Everyone had gone to the mess hall while they waited for the news about Eric and Kieta. They talked about the monsters and what they mainly expected for them. "I kind of want to see if some Temmies have set up a little village somewhere in Vale." Undyne said.

"Well, I'll pass. I kind of don't want to see that again, as amusing as it was in the underground." Ruby said.

"Fair enough. We'll send you a picture of what it looks like." Papyrus chuckled.

"Thanks." Ruby giggled, swallowing a cookie. After that, the doors opened and the twins came in, sitting near the teams. "So, what's the word?" Ruby asked.

"Kieta is in, but Ozpin is going to have to keep me on close surveillance since I'm not the most reputable person here." Eric said.

"Make sense." Ruby shrugged.

"To be honest, I don't care. As long as Kieta is safe, I'll do whatever punishment awaits for me to keep her safe." Eric said.

"Hey, thanks bro." Kieta said, plawfully punching Eric's arm.

"At least things are starting to look up for us." Ruby smiled.

"Yeah, and guess what I caught word of." Papyrus said.

"What?" Everyone asked.

"I hear something called the Vytal tournament is coming soon! Now, both monsters and humans are able to compete!" Papyrus said.

"Oh, cool! We were going to sign up for it anyway. It'll be nice to finally test our skill on other teams." Yang said.

"I know! It'll be a blast! I can't wait to see you guys on the stage, giving those guys a nice beating!" Papyrus said.

"Papyrus, calm down. It's a tournament with hunter teams, not enemies." Undyne said.

"I know, but still! Doesn't mean they have to go easy on them!" Papyrus said.

"Thanks Papyrus. I know this tournament will be a lot of fun." Ruby said.

"Well, I think whoever wins it isn't what's important. It's not the destination that matters, but the journey that counts." Pyrrha said.

"Well said! I agree, let's have fun in the tournament." Undyne said.

"Well, the tournament isn't until after the semester, so we'll have to wait for a while." Papyrus said.

"Well, the more training, the better." Undyne said.

They group then headed off, team RWBY and PAUS going to take a well deserved rest, and Eric and Kieta going to their temporary dorm, and JNPR going to their dorm to study for the semester.

In Eric and Kieta's dorm, they got comfortable in their new room and tried out the beds. "Oh my gosh, this is way better than rocks!" Kieta said, sprawling on the bed like a cat.

"Yeah, no kidding. Dumpsters got nothing on these." Eric said.

"I'm so happy we're finally together again." Kieta said.

"Me too, sis." Eric smiled.

"But... do you think the other one is still out there?" Kieta asked.

"It's possible." Eric said. "Unlikely, but still possible."

"I hope he isn't. He nearly destroyed the lab with a simple wave of the hand." Kieta said.

"If he is out there, we can handle him together." Eric assured.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm stressing too much. But... you think we might become a team here?" Kieta asked.

"Maybe, if two others join. Other than that, I think we might just be spectators here." Eric sighed.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I am taking a nap. My machine half needs to recharge." Kieta said, curling up in the covers.

"Speaking of which, both of our machine halves are showing. Should we take care of that?" Eric asked, but was answered by Kieta sighing in her sleep. Eric sighed and curled up, almost instantly going to sleep.

[BONUS SEGMENT, deep in the forest]

A ragged figure passed through a group of Beowolves, all of them seemingly shuddering in fear of the figure. He had a dark trench coat and a mask covering half his face, along with a zipped up grey and red leather jacket and pants, his shoes also grey and ragged. His face was dusty, with his uncovered side showing a red iris that seemed to glow. Any sane person would fear this man just from looking at him.

"So." The man said, his voice deep and seemed to echo in the woods. "The two have finally joined up. How adorable." He chuckled. "They are so eager to die. Very well. I, project G1R4, will destroy you, project 3R1C and project K13T4."

Eric woke from his dream, breathing heavy. He saw Kieta was the same. "You saw it too?" Eric asked.

"Yes." Kieta managed.

"Son of a-. We have to warn the others. He's coming." Eric said.

A/N

So, I know I'm going to get shit for focusing on my OCs more, but let me explain why. My OCs are basically relying on each other, so it would be hard to do this without all three. I promise, this will be the last of my own OC insertion. So, you can probably guess what G1R4 is based off of(*cough* Giratina *cough*). Anyway, hope you enjoyed, sorry for focusing on myself, and I am declaring that by chapter 30 I will stop taking OCs for a while. Sorry, but I actually can't focus on using this many OCs in this story. It is way harder than I expected, so by chapter 30 I will not be taking OC requests. Anyway, probably by chapter 30 the season 3 segment will begin. After that, I don't know. So anyway, PM me if you want to see your OC in here or if you have a story idea, and leave a review to tell me how bad or good I am, or both! Anyway, see you guys later.


	25. Chapter 25: Fitting In

Chapter 25: Fitting In

The next day, classes began. The schedules were changed a bit due to Toriel and Asgore becoming teachers. Toriel now taught monster types and abilities, and Asgore now taught monster history. He and Oobleck got along quite well, sharing history with each other. During lunch hour, teams RWBY and PAUS sat and talked about the tournament.

"I can't wait to see everyone's fighting style!" Ruby said.

"I thought you were going to say 'I can't wait to see everyone's weapons.'" Yang joked.

"Well, that too." Ruby said, blushing slightly.

"Hey guys, mind if I sit here?" Kerási asked.

"Sure." Yang said.

"What are you guys talking about?" Kerási asked.

"We were just talking about the tournament. Probably isn't something you're going to compete in." Sans said.

"Yeah, not my cup of tea." Kerási chuckled.

"Figures. Think the twins will compete?" Sans asked.

"Maybe, though they might not get in due to..." Ruby said.

"Yeah, Eric has quite the reputation." Yang said.

"Might be for the best." Weiss said. "I mean, he might cause some commotion at the tournament."

"I see where you're going with this, but that doesn't mean-" Undyne said.

"Guys, we need to talk." Eric said.

Everyone turned to see the twins with serious expressions. "What? You look like you're on a government mission." Yang said.

"This is serious. You remember the renegade unit we mentioned yesterday? He's awakened." Eric said.

"And he's intent on killing us for taking his glory. He can hold a grudge like you wouldn't believe." Kieta said.

"So basically take out this guy if we see him? Sounds easy." Yang said.

"It's not that easy. He can vanish from sight and can kill you without even knowing where he is. And after five years, God knows how strong he is now. So if you see him, do not fight him. You don't stand a chance against him. Not even the most powerful sensors could track him." Eric said.

"And he wields a power beyond any other. He can control Grimm through fear. His aura is stronger than almost anyone's, and his semblance allows him to travel through dimensions. Though, he has his weaknesses. He's vulnerable in this dimension, so if we can deactivate his enhancements, we can beat him." Kieta explained.

"So just disable his Bluetooth to dimensions and we got him? Well, easier said than done." Sans said.

Eric and Kieta nodded and went to get some food, sitting at an empty table. Well, it wasn't empty when they got there.

"I'm sure they'll fit in soon." Ruby said.

"You're an optimist, I'll give you that kiddo." Sans said.

The bell rang and they went to their next class, monster history. After a few minutes, Asgore began. "Good afternoon, students. Welcome to Monster History. To begin, please open your books to page two. Many years ago, even before my time, monsters and humans lived together in harmony. One day, war broke out between the two. This war was called 'the War of Ebott.' For that name, it mainly took place on Mt. Ebott. Soon, the monsters were defeated, sealed underground by seven of the humans' greatest dust users. The monsters then made their way through the underground, settling in the Ruins."

Asgore went on explaining how monsters lived their lives in the underground. Ruby was pretty much one of the only people that understood this, along with team PAUS. The majority had no idea what Asgore was talking about.

"Now then, any questions?" Asgore asked, several hands going up.

"Sir, how did the monsters become so easily overwhelmed?" One of the students asked.

"Good question. You see, it is based on the souls. Monster souls are much weaker than human souls. Although, that doesn't make monsters entirely vulnerable to humans. Next question." Asgore said.

"Why did the war start?" Kerási asked.

"Ah, yes. Even I do not know the real reason why the humans declared war, but I do have some guesses. It might have been because they knew how weak the monsters were. Or, it might have been they feared the monsters from what they can do." Asgore said.

"And that is?" Kerási asked.

"Should a monster fell a human, they can absorb their soul, becoming stronger than any being. The humans most likely feared that a monster would take a human's soul, thereby sealing them underground to prevent that disaster." Asgore said.

Ruby remembered the drawing of the being that was in the Waterfall. She remembered being curious and slightly scared of the drawing.

"And so, that concludes class today. Read over pages nine and ten and have a good day." Asgore said.

"Seems like the big guy is really doing a good job." Undyne said.

"Yeah, I wonder if Toriel is having as much luck." Ruby said.

They went to the monster types and abilities class and saw Toriel writing some stuff on the whiteboard. "Hello, class. Welcome to Monster Types and Abilities. As some of you may know, humans are made up mostly of water. Monsters are instead made mostly of magic. This explains their strange characteristics and abilities. Some monsters use this magic as a weapon to fight, others use it to build and make art. If you will open to page three, you will see that monsters come in all sorts of forms and have countless attacking styles. However, monsters have a sort of... Achilles Heel. The less they want to fight, the weaker they become. The same also goes for humans, but it is less noticeable. Anyway, monster attacks can vary from natural attacks to summoning. Now, any questions?"

"Mrs. Dreemurr, how do monsters use the magic they possess?" Pyrrha asked.

"That is a complicated subject, which we will discuss at a later time. Excellent question, however." Toriel said.

"Mrs. Dreemurr, what happens to a monster once they die? Does the magic leave their body, or..." Jaune asked.

"That, too, is a great question. When a monster dies, they turn to dust, and for their funerals, some call kind of cool. They spread the dust of the monster on their favorite item. Discussion of this topic will also be brought up later. Now then, some of you may know that I can use my magic to create fire." Toriel said, making her point by making a ball of fire dance in her palm. "Some humans might mistake this for my semblance. However, my semblance is not fire magic. In fact, fire magic is a common occurrence in monsters. Example: Papyrus, will you come up?"

Papyrus got up and walked to the front.

"Now, I understand that, since you are a skeleton, you use your magic to summon bones to attack. Demonstrate." Toriel said.

"Yes, Mrs. Dreemurr." Papyrus said, more formal than usual. He lifted his hand and a bone came from the ground, everyone awing at his ability.

"This is not, however, his semblance. It is simply his magic working. Though, monsters do not have an infinite supply of magic. You may be seated, Papyrus. Monsters take time to regenerate their magic. If they use it too quickly, it'll wear them down. I'm afraid that's all the time we have for the day, so read over section 1.2 and be ready to answer some questions. Class dismissed." Toriel said.

"Toriel also seems to be teaching well. Looks like all that time preparing payed off." Undyne said.

"Yeah! I got to show off my magic stuff!" Papyrus said.

Everyone chuckled and went to their next classes.

[two hours later, in the Emerald Forest]

Eric and Kieta were now searching the forest for Gira. They noticed a lack of Grimm in this area and stopped, Eric drawing Space Maker and Kieta drawing her weapon, Dimension Splitter, two katanas with black blades and purple hilts, able to combine to become a dual bladed katana. They narrowed their eyes and Kieta swung behind her, hitting an invisible blade.

"Hmph. Keen as ever." The invisible target smirked. He became visible to show the twins their man. "No point being invisible when you know where I am anyway."

"Gira. We don't want any trouble. We just came to talk." Eric said.

"Then why bring weapons? Seems like a very unwelcoming talk." Gira said.

"We knew you would try to kill us first. Please, just let us talk." Kieta said.

"You think a little chat will be enough to make me back down and not destroy everything you love? You are children." Gira snarled.

"What do you even have against us? Taking your glory? Getting what you deserve?" Eric asked.

Gira then laughed maniacally. "You fools. I have nothing against you. I just want to kill you for the hell of it. It's boring killing Grimm. They possess no brain at all. But humans, oh humans. They are a true challenge. Especially robotically enhanced ones, like you two. Now do me a favor and die." With that last sentence, he lunged forward, their swords clashing and creating sparks that flew everywhere. Eric knew Gira would eventually overwhelm them, even though there were two of them. He knew not to underestimate Gira, so he never let his guard down for a second.

Kieta, however, was not as fortunate. Gira mainly attacked her, wearing her down. Soon, she grew fatigued, giving Gira a chance, and lunged at her, slicing her thigh. She yelled in pain and slashed at Gira, who leaped out of the way. She checked her leg to see it was bleeding badly. Gira then took her by the arm and sliced at her robot half, damaging many of her components.

"Kieta!" Eric yelled, slamming Gira away. He checked her to see she was bleeding both blood and sparks, and he knew they needed to get out of here. "Kieta, don't use your ability. You'll just speed it up. It's going to be okay."

"Oh no you don't. You will not escape me!" Gira roared.

Eric looked at him with pure hate. "Not today, bastard." Eric snarled, flying back to Beacon, not fast enough to cause Kieta too much pain. He knew he could hear Gira yelling and cursing at them.

He landed at Beacon and saw Kieta was worse than he though. Teams RWBY and JNPR saw them and rushed to them. "Eric! Kieta! What-" Ruby said.

"Shut up! Shut up and help me! She's dying! Please help me!" Eric yelled.

Yang helped Eric carry Kieta to the medical wing along with Pyrrha tearing off part of her cloth and wrapping around Kieta's thigh, trying to slow the bleeding.

Soon after they reached the wing, Yang and Pyrrha went back, mainly due to Eric's insisting on them leaving him be. He sat next to Kieta, waiting. The heart monitor stayed steady fortunately, making Kieta only unconscious. Soon, Ruby came in with a plate of food. "Eric? Do you want some food? You haven't eaten in a while." Ruby asked.

"No. Please leave me alone." Eric said in a monotone voice.

"Eric, this isn't healthy for you. Please, at least-" Ruby said.

"I said leave!" Eric shouted. Ruby flinched and looked at him with scared eyes. Eric sighed. "Sorry. I didn't mean to- please just go." Eric said.

Ruby sighed and went off, looking back at him before exiting.

Days went by, and Eric didn't move. He had grown more skinny due to him not eating anything.

"Kieta. Please, don't leave. I can't afford to lose you. You're all the family I have left." Eric said, tears streaking down his face. Then, he felt something touch his hand. "Ruby, how many times do I have to tell-"

"Eric, you're awfully skinny." A familiar voice said. Eric opened his eyes to see Kieta with her hand on his. "And are you crying? I didn't know you still cared."

Eric couldn't stop himself. He embraced his sister in a huge hug, crying heavily. "Kieta... I'm so happy you're alive." Eric sniffed.

Kieta hugged him back. "Good to be alive. Though, there's... something I need to tell you."

"What is it?" Eric asked, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"While I was out, I had a vision. It was about Gira. And Flowey. They both work for the White Fang." Kieta said.

Eric's joy suddenly turned to hate. "The White Fang. So that's it, huh? They want to take everything from me. I knew I should have killed Flowey when I could have."

"Eric, stop. If you pressure yourself too much, you'll just go right into their trap. You'll just make it easier for them to kill you." Kieta said.

Eric took several deep breaths. "Thank you. I'm alright now."

"Besides, you need to take a shower. You smell like a wet dog on a strict diet of crap." Kieta said, plugging her nose.

Eric sniffed his arm and his face scrunched up. "Wow, that is a sour smell. Alright, I'll take a shower."

"I'll stay here just in case I haven't fully healed." Kieta said.

"We should also repair your servos. That hit you took really did a number on them." Eric said.

"True. Alright, after I get out." Kieta said.

Eric chuckled and touched her forehead. "Rest easy for now. I think everyone will be on high alert for Gira, so don't worry about him coming."

That night, Eric got washed off and got some food. Well, some is an exaggeration. He basically had a Vegas style all you can eat buffet as a midnight snack. Soon, someone came to join him. "Got some cookies in there?" Ruby asked.

"Uh, yeah. Right here. Help yourself." Eric said, sliding a plate of cookies to Ruby.

"Good to see you walking around again." Ruby said, taking a few cookies.

"Kieta says I shouldn't worry about her and do something productive. Well, I might be paraphrasing." Eric chuckled.

"Well, at least she's alright. Also, Ozpin requested me to deliver a message to you." Ruby said.

"A message? About what?" Eric asked.

"He said he wanted you to come to his office once you got up." Ruby said.

"Oh boy. Hope I didn't do something wrong." Eric said, finishing his last pancake.

After washing off, he headed to Ozpin's office as requested. "Please come in, Eric." Ozpin said.

"Sir, I just want to say I did nothing wrong." Eric said.

"I know. That's not why you're here." Ozpin said.

"Then why did you bring me up here?" Eric asked.

"During the time you were... gone, I have been thinking. I have discussed with the other staff and they have agreed to keep surveillance on you at a minimum. As well, once your sister has fully recovered, we will announce you two as a team. However, I have one term." Ozpin said.

"And that is?" Eric asked.

"Actually, there is two. First, you must attend classes like the other students. And second, you must promise not to cause any panic on the school grounds. Though the staff are starting to trust you, the students may not trust you as much." Ozpin said.

"Very well. I accept your terms." Eric said.

Ozpin smiled. "Welcome to Beacon, then."

"I'm sure I'll enjoy my stay." Eric said. As he began to walk out, he remembered what Kieta told him. "Oh, and Ozpin. I think I should warn you of something. My sister had a vision. Gira and Flowey are working for the White Fang."

"I thought as much. Thank you for the information, Eric. You are excused." Ozpin said.

Eric nodded and exited. The next day, things were back to normal. Thankfully, Kieta healed enough to be able to walk around. Though, she spent most of her time in the workshop, fixing her arm. She did come out to have her meals though, so she wasn't entirely reclusive.

At lunch, Eric mostly sat with Ruby, since she was the one person who he really considered to be a friend. He didn't know why, but he felt like he could trust her.

"Eric, when did you become so social?" Yang joked.

"It's called 'maturing.' Maybe one day you'll experience it too." Eric joked.

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with being a bit of a kid sometimes." Yang defended.

"And by sometimes you mean every day?" Undyne asked.

"I see nothing wrong with that." Sans said.

"Thank you." Yang said.

"Hey, how's Kieta doing?" Ruby asked.

"She's doing fine, though she spends a lot of her time in the workshop. Gira really did a number on her servos. Half of her battle devices were damaged." Eric said.

"She's fine other than that, right?" Ruby asked.

"Oh yeah, she's still her. Childish and playful. Kind of like you." Eric said. 'Maybe that's why I've lightened up to Ruby.' Eric thought.

"So we have two Rubys walking around Beacon?" Sans said.

"Trust me Sans, by the end of the semester, we'll have an army of Rubys." Eric joked.

"That actually is terrifying." Undyne said.

"Yay! I'm feared!" Ruby cheered.

"I don't think that's something you should be proud of, kiddo." Sans chuckled.

"Well, for someone like her, it's a pretty impressive milestone." Eric said.

"Now you've given her something to brag about. Good job Eric." Yang said.

"How's it my fault?" Eric defended.

"'An army of Rubys.' 'Pretty impressive milestone.'" Yang said.

"What? I'm just saying, for someone her age it's pretty impressive." Eric said.

"He has a point." Papyrus said.

"Don't encourage him." Undyne said.

"The last thing we need is a new Ruby." Kerási joked.

"What's so wrong about cloning?" Eric asked.

"Not what I meant." Kerási sighed.

"If you ask me, though, cloning an army of Rubys could be pretty useful." Eric said.

"Guys, you're really weirding me out." Ruby said.

"I'm just saying you're a good fighter. And a good person in general." Eric said.

"Thanks, I guess." Ruby said.

"Now I'm sure you've been drinking last night." Yang joked.

"Well, I did have a ton of food last night. Maybe that has something to do with it." Eric shrugged.

"I didn't see anything that would make you drunk." Ruby said.

"Looks can be deceiving." Eric chuckled. "But don't worry, those cookies weren't drugged."

"How much did you eat last night?" Weiss asked.

"Um... as much food as an all you can eat buffet." Eric said, scratching the back of his head.

"Yeah, that explains it." Weiss sighed.

"It was a nice midnight snack though." Eric said.

"It looked more like a meal for a king." Ruby said.

"Did you take Asgore's lunch?" Sans joked.

"Maybe I did. There were some strange foods in there." Eric chuckled.

"So anyway, I hear that Muffet finally finished her cafe. I hear the food she makes there is better than any other cafe." Papyrus said.

"Who?" Eric asked.

"She's a spider monster. She had a fundraiser in the underground before the monsters were released." Ruby said.

"Oh, that one. Yeah, I tried her food once. She makes some pretty nice cider." Eric said.

"Agreed." Ruby nodded.

"Now I feel left out." Yang said.

"We should visit her sometime." Papyrus said.

"That does actually sound pretty nice." Undyne said.

"It would be nice to take a day to relax." Alphys said.

"Saturday then?" Ruby suggested.

"Sure! Maybe we can even get Asgore, Toriel and Asriel to come along!" Papyrus said.

"More friends, the merrier." Eric chuckled.

"Kiki, you want to join?" Ruby asked.

"Sure. It sounds like a killer cafe." Kerási said.

"Why would we want to go to a cafe that has killers?" Sans asked.

"Sans, please." Kerási sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

They all chuckled and left for their next class.

[BONUS SEGMENT, White Fang hideout]

"So, did they come?" Adam asked.

"Yes sir. I disabled Kieta but Eric got away with her. But Kieta shouldn't be able to use her ability for a while." Gira said.

"Good. Anything else to report?" Adam said.

"No sir." Gira said.

"Very well. You are dismissed." Adam said, waving off Gira. "And Flowey, I am sorry to say none of my men came back with a human soul."

"This was my worry. At this rate, my true form will never be unlocked. I'd rather go myself, but it would draw attention to me, and those brats at Beacon would come after me. Though I could handle them, I'd rather keep the fun for the big moment." Flowey said.

"Do not worry, Flowey. You will achieve your true form in due time. However, I have a plan for that moment." Adam chuckled.

"You mean when you awaken... I see. Very well, I shall leave this matter to you." Flowey said.

"In the end, Beacon shall be your throne. You will have all the human souls you could wish for." Adam said.

"No. Only seven will be enough. I have three right now, so only four more will do." Flowey said.

"Very well. I shall keep the souls until the big day." Adam said.

Flowey nodded and tangled into the ground. Adam continued to plan, writing down battle strategies and advantages they could use.

A/N

So it seems that our old buddy Adam is going to awaken two great forces. As well, it seems the cyborg renegade is fighting with the White Fang. How will our heroes deal with these new forces? And what awaits for them in the eventful battle? Stay tuned and find out!

With that out of the way, thank you for reading this far. Have a cookie. Unless you hate cookies. In that case, have something you like. Anyway, I love character development, so I dedicated this chapter to it. Sorry if I based this one too much on my own OC. I sometimes forget I have other OCs in this story. So sorry if you feel your OC isn't important, I'm trying to put them in when I can. My memory isn't the greatest. So thank you for your patience, and I will be trying to post regularly. That's all.


	26. Chapter 26: Adjustments

Chapter 26: Adjustments

The next day, Kieta finally fully healed, thanks to Toriel's cooking, but she still worked in the workshop, even though her arm was completely fixed. She seemed intent on working on something. What is was, though, not even Eric knew. Kieta always told him it was a surprise.

"Hey, look on the bright side, at least she's working." Sans said.

"Though I'd like to know what it is she's working on." Eric said.

"If it's a surprise, she'll eventually tell you, right?" Ruby said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Eric sighed.

"Anyway, we got the day free, so how about we go into town and have a look around?" Yang said.

"I think I'll pass this time. I got to check my devices, make sure they're not overloading and stuff. You don't want to know what happens if they work for three weeks straight without resting." Eric said.

"Let me guess. Explode?" Yang said.

"Oh, much worse. You ever heard of gravitational anomalies?" Eric said.

"Wow. That is a new level of balling." Yang said.

"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I'll best head off. See you guys later." Eric said, heading off to the workshop.

"Well, can't have everyone all the time I guess." Yang said.

"At least Eric is becoming more social." Ruby said.

"Yeah, it's nice to see him being more friendly and not 'I'm mr. cyborg-killer-dude of seriousness.'" Yang said.

"Agreed." Papyrus said.

"You think they, along with Penny, will make good friends with Mettaton?" Ruby asked.

"Oh definitely. Though I think they'd best stay away from Mettaton, since he might teach them bad habits." Alphys said.

"And where's the fun in that? Besides, they seem mature enough to know what's good and what's bad." Yang said.

"Fair point." Alphys shrugged.

"Anyway, how about we visit Muffet's cafe?" Papyrus said.

"Not a bad idea. Might be a good way to unwind." Undyne said.

"Agreed. After last month, I need something to settle down with. Jeez, that was an eventful month." Alphys said.

"I know, right? First monsters are free, next an info raid, then a mission to a Grimm infested mountain, then next thing you know we're fighting for our lives." Yang said.

"If that's not an eventful month, God knows what is." Ruby said.

"Amen to that. Well, let's get going." Undyne said.

They took a ship to Vale and went down the streets, seeing a few monsters having the funerals for the monsters that died in the breach. Except for the Temmies. They just did their usual thing... which is random things at random times. To be honest, no one even knows what they do in their free time. The teams sometimes have random guesses at what they do, mainly to pass time.

On the way, they saw Mettaton talking with... Penny?

"Alphys, you really actually arranged a meet with them?" Undyne said.

"Well, you guys said it would be a good idea." Alphys said.

"True." Undyne shrugged.

"Well, let's just let them be and move on." Yang said.

They went on, seeing a few construction cites for the buildings that were damaged in the breach. As well, it looked like they were enforcing the area that the breach was at, which was a smart move. Across the street, they saw the cafe, which was slightly damaged, but for the most part okay. They went in and did not expect the sight they saw. The place was more tidy than they expected, though webs still were around the place.

"Ahuhuhu. Welcome, monsters and humans." Muffet said.

"Hey Muff. Still in working hours?" Sans said.

"Indeed we are. Ah, Miss Ruby. Long time no see. Apologies for... trying to kill you in the underground." Muffet said.

"No worries, everyone there tried to kill me at least once." Ruby said.

"Sadly, she's not lying." Papyrus said.

"Well, what a kind heart you have. Oh, pardon me, getting sidetracked again, ahuhuhu. Please, take a seat." Muffet said.

They sat at an eight chaired table and ordered some drinks, team RWBY, minus Ruby, getting water from not knowing what the spider cider was made of.

"Trust me, it's better than it sounds. Just don't think about the spider part and it tastes great." Ruby said.

"So is it made of actual spiders or is it just a saying?" Weiss asked.

"It's mostly just a saying. If they made it of spiders, that would be kind of messed up." Undyne said.

"I kind of wish there weren't so many webs." Yang said, brushing some webs out of her hair.

"Oh, they mainly use them to keep the bugs out. Pretty good usage of them if you ask me." Alphys said.

"But still annoying none the less." Yang said.

A short while later, they got some food and even team RWBY found the spider food something to die for. "Holy Dust this is amazing." Blake said, chowing down a spider donut.

"Yeah, no kidding. You guys weren't lying when you said Muffet's food is the best." Yang said.

"Would we ever lie to you?" Papyrus asked.

"I dunno. Maybe?" Yang said.

"She's not exactly wrong." Sans said.

After they finished, they went back to Beacon and did their usual thing. Meanwhile, Eric finished check-ups on his machine half and was walking around campus. He finally got on Kerási's good side and the two were practically best friends. As he sat down on a stair, a shadow above him got his attention. He turned to see it was his sister.

"Hey Kieta. I thought you were still in the workshop." Eric said.

"I finished what I was working on. And now you get to know what it is. Close your eyes and hold out your left arm." Kieta said.

"Uh, alright." Eric said, closing his eyes and lifting his left arm, making sure not to activate it. He felt something go into his arm and a shock went though him.

"Okay, you can open your eyes." Kieta said.

"Jeez, what was that?" Eric said, shacking his hand to get feeling back into it.

"I put in a fail safe module. If one of our hearts stop beating, confirming us dead, then the dead one's robot half will disconnect, going to the other and combining the devices. In short, if one of us dies, the other gets the dead one's robotic enhancements." Kieta explained.

"And if we both die?" Eric asked.

"Then the servos will automatically disconnect and dismantle, making our robot half completely useless so the enemy won't get them." Kieta said.

"I like it." Eric smiled.

"Also, I've put in another function. I'll have to work on your arm a little, but once I complete it, your arm will be able to do more than just control gravity. You'll be able to expand your wrist while you punch, letting you have further reach." Kieta said.

"Wow. Now I'm thankful for you being left handed." Eric said.(for those that don't know, it's a common saying that left handed people are more imaginative.)

"Heh. Well, I figured since Gira beat us so easily we should get some upgrades. Just a thought." Kieta said.

"It was my fault we were beaten. I should have known better than to try to take on Gira this early in the game. We have to train more. If we train along with the hunters here, we might stand a chance against Gira." Eric said.

"True. But how will we convince them to let us into the school? I mean, sure, they're letting us stay here, but that's just that. They're not letting us attend classes." Kieta said.

"Well..." Eric said.

"If you wanted to attend, all you had to do was ask." Ozpin said from behind them.

"Wait, you're serious?" Eric asked.

Ozpin nodded. "I know what you two are fighting, so I understand your situations. Though you will not be an official team, I will allow you two to attend classes and go on the same training routines as the students here."

"Thank you sir. I promise you you won't regret it." Eric said.

"I presume I won't. However, I do have one request. Please do not go on wild goose chases for danger, otherwise your training will prove to be pointless." Ozpin said.

"Yes sir." The two said.

[the next week]

The group was at lunch, talking about the tournament as usual. Eric and Kieta had started to be comfortable not having their machine cover on, the fake skin on their arms no longer there.

"Doesn't food taste worse when you touch it with your metal hand?" Yang asked.

"Nope. Taste just the same. It's not like we slather them with oil." Eric said.

"Fair point." Yang said.

"Also, we have taste sensors in our heads, so we can say when to taste something or not." Kieta said.

"Yes, and I kind of wanted to keep that a secret from them." Eric said.

"So basically you could eat grass and it would taste like chocolate?" Yang asked.

"Pretty much." Eric said.

"Dude, you are taking the next level of baller." Undyne said.

"Hey, perks of being a cyborg." Eric shrugged.

"But the downside is that we always have to check up on our servos and modules to make sure they don't overload." Kieta said.

"That part sucks." Eric said.

"Well, can't have everything." Alphys said.

"Beggars can't be choosers." Ruby said.

"True." Eric sighed.

"So what kind of moves do you think everyone will have in the tournament?" Kieta said.

"No idea. Bound to be countless techniques." Yang said.

"Not like we don't have a few tricks up our sleeves though." Ruby said.

"True. Though the tournament will be freaking awesome." Undyne said.

"We might need to read up on how it works, though." Alphys said.

"Oh, no need. They'll explain the rules before you go out there." Ruby said.

"Oh, thank God." Alphys sighed.

"So what kind of techniques do you guys have planned?" Eric asked.

"We have an all team attack that... nah, I shouldn't say. You'll see it when it happens." Ruby said.

"Fair enough." Eric shrugged.

"What about you, Jaune?" Kieta asked.

"We're still working on it." Jaune said.

"Mainly the whole name thing." Ren said.

"Well, good luck with that. Anyway, Eric, are we going to be in the tournament?" Kieta asked.

"I already discussed this with you. We can't participate because we're not an official Hunter team." Eric said.

"That's stupid." Kieta complained.

"Agreed." Undyne said.

"Rules are rules." Weiss said.

"If only we had two other people willing to form a team." Kieta said.

"And even if we did, there's no way we could coordinate team attacks within three months. Those usually take at least a week to come up with and months more to perfect." Eric said.

"Maybe it's for the best. We can still watch the tournament. Silver linings, you know?" Kieta said.

"At least you're an optimist." Eric said.

As they ate, Eric caught sight of an unfamiliar face. She was a wolf Faunus by the looks and had black hair and red eyes. She wore a black shirt with a Beowolf on it and blue pants and black converse shoes. She seemed to be observing Eric, like she wanted to know more about him.

"Hey, who's the wolf Faunus over there?" Eric asked.

"Her? That's Vasha Lynn. She's normally cheerful, but she has a short fuse. She's one of the best close quarter fighters I've ever seen." Ruby explained.

"Huh. I think she's observing me." Eric said.

"She does that when she sees someone not fully human. In fact, I heard she got really uncomfortable when the monsters were freed." Yang said.

"I guess I can understand that. I wonder how long she's been observing me." Eric said.

"Wouldn't doubt it if she's been observing you since you got here." Yang said.

This made Eric cautious of her. He would have to confront her later. 'If she's an enemy, I have to know.' Eric thought.

"Eric? Hey, Eric!" Kieta said, waving her hand in front of Eric's face.

"Oh, sorry. Got lost in my thoughts again." Eric said, moving Kieta's hand from his face.

Later that day, Eric had gotten information on where Vasha usually hangs around at. He waited for the wolf Faunus to appear and sure enough, she showed up, almost as if she was expecting him.

"How long have you been observing me?" Eric asked.

"Three weeks." Vasha said.

"And I take it you know a fair bit about me." Eric said.

"I know the majority of your robotic half, but your humanity bit is still a mystery to me." Vasha said.

"How so?" Eric asked.

"I still don't know your semblance." Vasha said.

"If you want to know so badly, it's telepathy. Though, it's more like twin ESP. I can communicate with Kieta anywhere at any time. This provides as sharing battle strategies during battle." Eric said.

"However, one thing bothers me about you. You switched from being one of the White Fang to being one of it's greatest foes. I don't fully believe you have changed that greatly." Vasha said.

"So... You really want to know my story with the White Fang? Here's the short bit: they burned my home to the ground, had me turned into a cyborg by Atlas, and they forcefully put a disc into my skull to make me their own. If that isn't justified reason to hate them, I don't know what is." Eric said.

"I know all this. But I still don't trust you. Lessons have taught me to not fully trust people until you know them inside and out." Vasha said.

"Man, you're hard to get along with. And what's to say I don't fully trust you either? Everyone has their dark little secrets, and I can tell from you that you have more than your fair share of secrets." Eric said.

"You're more intelligent than you look. I'd have to fully trust you before I tell you my secrets." Vasha said.

"And I guess it'll take much more to do that as well. I guess it does make sense. But it's not healthy to shut yourself off from the world just because of a few bad experiences. Take it from me. I nearly lost Kieta because of my stupidity and blindness, but I still fight." Eric said.

"And why is that? To protect her? To show yourself worthy? To redeem yourself?" Vasha asked.

"I only fight to protect Kieta. Nothing else. As long as Kieta stays safe, I will continue to fight." Eric said.

"Aw, how passionate. And here I thought you only fought to make yourself look good." Vasha said.

"You know, I do have a sarcasm sensor." Eric said, tapping the metal side of his head.

Vasha chuckled. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

"Well, sorry to say I must go. Kieta probably wants to fine tune my upgrades." Eric said, walking off.

[the next week]

The group was walking around campus, talking about the events of last week, mostly about Asgore and Toriel's classes.

"I am kinda glad the two got back together." Undyne said.

"Yeah, they were so gloomy separated." Papyrus said.

"And to think that all happened because of Asriel." Yang said.

"Because Ruby was kind enough to share her soul with him." Sans said.

"Oh, stop it." Ruby said.

"Man, how much did I miss?" Eric said. "You guys should have left some of the fun for me."

"Trust me, you missed everything." Sans said.

"Well, that sucks." Eric said.

"Hey, speaking of Asriel, Toriel told me that he was visiting today!" Papyrus said.

"Why didn't you tell us earlier, bonehead?" Undyne said.

"Please don't hit the skeleton!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Well, if he's here, we'd best see him." Ruby said.

Everyone nodded and went outside, seeing the Dreemurrs heading their way. Asriel seemed less happy than usual.

"Hey Asriel! Why the long face?" Papyrus said.

"Hey guys. I... I need to tell you something, Ruby." Asriel said.

Ruby looked to the others, who looked just as confused as she was. "Uh, sure." Ruby said.

"I... I don't know how to say this, but..." Asriel seemed very timid. "Please don't hate me, but it wasn't just physical contact that your soul was shared. I... I was the one who took part of it."

"WHAT?!" Everyone exclaimed.

"I was so afraid, I didn't know what to do. I knew it was wrong, but I just didn't want to be turned back into a flower. I'm so sorry, Ruby. Please don't hate me." Asriel said.

Ruby didn't know what to say. Sure, Asriel was a kind person- Er, monster. But that didn't mean that he deserved to be turned into a flower just because he took part of her soul. Sure, she was slightly mad at him, but she didn't blame him for doing what he did. Ruby didn't even want to imagine what being a flower felt like.

Ruby saw that everyone had the same reaction. Some were close to drawing their weapons, others were just in pure shock. Ruby shook out of her shock and did something that made everyone even more shocked. She hugged Asriel.

"I don't hate you. I forgive you, friend." Ruby said.

Asriel was now in shock. "F-friend?" Asriel asked.

"Yeah. I don't mind if you took part of my soul. You're a kind being. To be honest, I'm glad you're still alive." Ruby said.

"R-Ruby. You're going to make me..." Asriel said, not finishing his sentence due to him breaking into tears. No one dared to make a move. Some wanted to kill Asriel for taking part of Ruby's soul without her consent. Some wanted to join them in the hug. And then there was Sans, just nonchalantly standing around.

Eric was the most confused. He had no idea what was going on, but decided to keep his mouth shut to keep from offending anyone.

Soon, the group dispersed, everyone still slightly in their mixed feelings on the recent events.

"I don't understand how you can forgive someone like that." Weiss said.

"It's called having a big heart." Ruby said.

"And also having a warm one." Yang added.

"Okay, so I can be a little cold hearted at times, I get that. I still just don't get how you can forgive someone who did that and still call them a friend." Weiss said.

"Because if it wasn't for him, I'd still be in the underground." Ruby said more sternly than before.

"She does have a point there." Yang said.

Weiss was about to say something, but bit her tongue. She didn't want to cause a scene by saying someone like that. Also, it was pretty cold hearted even for her. "Fine. Whatever. So he freed you and all the monsters. Still doesn't justify stealing part of someone's soul." Weiss said.

"I think he had good reason to. Would you like to be a flower for the rest of your life?" Blake said.

"Well, no, but-" Weiss said.

"Then he has enough justification to do what he did." Blake said.

Weiss hated to admit it, but Blake was right. Being a flower doesn't sound very pleasant. "Alright, fine." Weiss sighed.

For team PAUS, things were going about as well as they could get. "If Ruby is fine with it, then I don't see the harm in it." Sans said.

"You don't see the problem, though! I feel Ruby's soul is more than just a normal human soul." Undyne said.

"Undyne's right. I did research on other human souls, and they were less powerful than Ruby's. I don't know if it's just her pure determination or if it's much more, but she's beyond any other human." Alphys said.

"That's why she's an awesome friend!" Papyrus said.

"Yeah, my bro's right. You two worry too much." Sans said.

"Papyrus, Sans, you two don't see the danger in the situation. If Asriel dies, who knows what'll happen to the fragment of Ruby's soul? Flowey would do anything to get even a piece of her soul if it meant he got her strength." Undyne said.

"But we don't know what'll happen. For all we know, it could return to Ruby. We won't know until it happens. And you don't want to kill an innocent kid, do ya? I'm not sure if Toriel and Asgore will take it well." Sans said.

"Along with many others. Asriel already made an effect on many people. If he were to die, they would all find the killer and give them justice." Papyrus said.

"You got a point there." Undyne sighed.

"Besides, that kid is doing fine right now. Not like he's going evil or anything." Sans said.

"As far as we know." Undyne said.

"As far as we know." Sans repeated.

For Eric, he was confused as heck. He had multiple questions in his head, but couldn't find anyone to answer them. Eric sighed. 'Guess I got to learn the long, boring way.' Eric thought. As he walked down the hall, he looked out the window and froze. In the distance, thanks to his robotic enhancements, he could see some White Fang carrying... souls.

"No. They can't be. Do they have any idea what they're awakening?" Eric said. He knew full well what they were awakening and wanted to stop them, but orders from Ozpin told him otherwise. He snarled at the fact that Ozpin was keeping him from helping. Part of him wanted to break through the window and smash those soul containers into the ground, but part of him said to not. He would be endangering many people, probably even Kieta.

He gritted his teeth, anger radiating from him. "One day." Eric snarled, walking on. In his mind, he was regretting ever agreeing with Ozpin.

A/N

Wow. I got carried away writing this one. Sorry for the drama. Anyway, the OC Vasha was submitted by rwbyfan54, so thank you for your submission. Sorry if I made her OOC, but to be fair, you didn't explain her personality. Anyway, sorry if I rushed through this chapter. This week has been very eventful for me. As well, fanfic is being a little weird and not letting me see reviews on the website, but I still can see them from my email. And my computer is pretty F-ed up, so I might need to get a new one. That'll be fun. Also, one last thing. I might not update as much since I need to focus on school work more right now. If you guys are in high school, I feel your pain right now. With that said, stay tuned for the next chapter.

NYEH HEH HEH!


	27. Chapter 27: Vacation to the Underground

Chapter 27: Vacation to the Underground

A few weeks later, the team's were finally let out on a break. They had been planning a vacation for a while, and have decided to take a visit to the Underground.

"I thought you guys hated it down there." Yang said.

"Oh, we did. It's just a little... homesickness. Snowdin may have been a crap hole, but it was home." Papyrus said.

"And just wait until you see the Waterfall. It is both a junkyard and a place of beauty." Undyne said.

"Aside from Temmie Village. That was an eye sore." Sans said.

"You don't even have eyes." Alphys said.

"Exactly." Sans chuckled.

They went to Mt. Ebott and went into the passage that led into the Underground, entering their past prison once again. Team RWBY(minus Ruby) was in awe. They had expected to see more of a cave like area with no majesty at all, but this was totally different from what they had expected. The castle was beautiful, what they assumed was sunlight gleaming through the windows in the throne room.

They took a few elevators through the castle, Core, and Hotland to finally get to Waterfall. It, too, was beautiful, even when it was mostly untouched. The water was more fresh than they had ever seen before and the light of the gems gleamed off the water, making artificial light. There were a few monsters here and there, probably some that liked the Underground despite it being their prison. Soon, they got to Snowdin and they were now both confused and in awe.

"How does it snow down here?" Weiss asked.

"That's your first question? I though you would love this place." Sans said.

"No kidding. This seems like a nice place to... chill out." Yang joked.

"Oh, here comes the nostalgia." Ruby sighed.

"This place is the memorial of thousands of puns, and you are about to make it another thousand." Papyrus said.

"Come on, don't be so cold shouldered." Yang said.

"At least you'll stay warm with that hot head." Sans joked.

"Kill me now." Papyrus groaned.

"That's a little bit-" Sans said.

"IF YOU SAY GRIMM I WILL END YOU!" Papyrus snapped.

"I was going to say cold, but okay." Sans said.

"Can we please get past the jokes and continue on?" Undyne asked.

"Yes! Let's go before these two have a chance to make anymore puns!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Hey man, don't leave the deadweight." Sans joked, everyone(except Yang) groaning.

They went to the Grillby bar to see it was still open, Grillby still inside. They went in, sitting at an eight person table. They ordered a few burgers, and Sans whispered something to Grillby, who seemed to get the idea. Soon, he came back out with seven normal burgers and a burger with fishes instead of regular meat for Blake, who's heart skipped a beat upon seeing the majesty of the burger.

They talked about the Underground while they ate, team RWBY(minus Ruby) saying their thoughts on the Underground. Yang and Sans threw a few puns in once in a while, which everyone expected to happen. They forced themselves not to vomit over the terrible puns.

"There are some monsters that stayed behind here to either raise a family or because they had too much to leave behind here." Undyne said.

"There are many other reasons, but those are the most common ones." Papyrus said.

"One of which is some couldn't handle life on the surface, so they stayed down here where they were safe." Sans said.

"There are also some humans that wanted to see life down here, and some decided to stay." Ruby said.

"Yeah, I did notice that. I guess some people are more custom to life away from ordinary." Undyne said.

"That or they've lived in the basement for a while. Am I right?" Yang said, holding her hand up for a high five, responded by awkward silence, Yang awkwardly sinking back into her chair and continuing to eat her burger.

"Anyway, I hear that some sort of force is keeping the Grimm away from the Underground, making this place safer than anywhere on Remnant." Alphys said.

"So basically this is like a ground zero?" Ruby asked.

"In simple terms, yes." Alphys said.

"Well, at least we know where to go in the apocalypse." Yang joked.

"Assuming it happens." Undyne said.

"Yeah, whatever." Yang said.

"I also heard that the top of Mt. Ebott has never been seen before by neither human's nor monsters. Some have rumors that a great beast rests there, emitting the aura that keeps the Grimm at bay. Or maybe a vast treasure that only kings could hold." Papyrus said.

"You sure can dream big, bro. Almost enough to fill all the Underground." Sans said.

"Not my fault I have an imagination." Papyrus shrugged.

Soon they finished eating and went on, going to the ruins where it all began. As they went through, Ruby practically guided them through the Ruins, informing and saying her personal memories.

"It's like you lived here your whole life." Undyne admired.

"She has observation and memory like you wouldn't believe." Yang said.

"Honestly, even I'm impressed." Blake said.

Soon, they reached the end of the Ruins, sunlight gleaming through the crater in the mountain. "And this is where I fell into the Underground. This is where it all began." Ruby said, flashbacks of the Underground going across her mind. Her trying to get back up, her encounter with Flowey, Toriel saving her, all the monsters she spared, everything in her adventure. It all originated from here; the first place she was at in the Underground.

"Ruby? Are you... crying?" Undyne asked.

Ruby realized during her flashbacks she let out a tear. "Oh, it's nothing. I was... just remembering all the events that happened down here." Ruby said, wiping the tear from her eye.

"Hooray! She remembers the times I tried to capture her and made her spaghetti!" Papyrus cheered.

"And all the amazing puns I made with her." Sans smiled.

"And all the times I tried to kill her and ended up trying to make pasta with her." Undyne said.

"And the time when she forgives me even with all the things that I did." Alphys said.

"Guys, thank you. I never would have thought-" Ruby said, but staggered. She didn't realize how dizzy she had gotten, and her mind became blurry. She fainted, the last thing she heard being everyone in surprise. She couldn't make out what they were saying, but she soon succumb to unconsciousness.

[a few hours later, Ruby's POV]

I don't know how long I was out for, but when I woke up, I was in the medical wing at Beacon, team PAUS distantly talking. I tried to sit up, but a pain in my chest made me sit back down, as well as cough. They noticed this and rushed over to me.

"Ruby! Oh thank God you're alright!" Papyrus said.

"Yeah, tell us next time before you come down with a fever." Sans said.

"No kidding! You made Papyrus cry like a baby." Undyne said.

"What?! I- I- OKAY SO I CRIED A LITTLE BIT!" Papyrus exclaimed.

I chuckled, but immediately regretted doing so, coughing painfully. "Please... just let me rest. I feel like my throat is going to explode." I coughed.

"Sorry, Ruby. We should go. Hope you get better soon." Alphys said, team PAUS exiting the wing.

I sat in the bed for at least an hour before Toriel and Asgore came up, along with Asriel.

"My child, are you alright?" Toriel asked.

"Yeah. Fin as a fiddle." I said meakly.

"Tori made some pie for you when you are well enough to eat. It might help you with your condition." Asgore said, putting a slice of butterscotch pie on the stand next to my bed.

"Thanks goat mom." I said.

"That's a new one. I think the fever is getting to your head." Toriel said.

"I think I might have some of that pie later." I joked.

"Hey, Ruby. Are you doing alright without..." Asriel asked.

"Don't worry. This happens to everyone every now and then." I said. "I'm doing fine with what I have."

"That makes me feel a little better." Asriel said.

"Rest now, my child. You need to let your body rest so it can recover." Toriel said, feeling my forehead. "Your fever seems to be less fierce than before, but do not be too reckless, my child."

"Alright. I'm just going to take a nap." I said, resting my head on the pillow, heading into a dreamless sleep.

When I woke up, it was night. The pie was still on my stand, so I decided to take a bite to help a bit. I didn't notice a familiar cyborg sitting next to my bed until I turned back around.

"Oh, hey Eric." I said.

"Hi Ruby. You holding up alright?" Eric asked.

"Yeah. What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I was just watching over you, making sure no one came here to hurt you more." Eric said.

"Thanks buddy." I said. I was about to go to sleep, but Eric put a hand on my arm.

"Ruby, I think I should tell you something. Something I've been working on with Kieta." Eric said.

I raised an eyebrow. "What is it?" I asked.

"I don't know how to explain it, but... we've been working on an ultimate fail safe weapon. If both of us are to die, then the fail safe will activate. Along with disassembling our machine halves, a machine with both of our consciousness will activate. This machine has more armor than ten Paladins and enough firepower to conquer an entire kingdom. If something rises, the machine, which I have called Project V01D, will fight until death." Eric said.

If it weren't for the fact that I had a fever, I would have begged Eric to show me V01D, but I was too tired to even get up. "That's cool. Maybe you can show it to me once I get out." I yawned.

"Don't push yourself too hard. Just rest easy and don't pressure yourself." Eric said.

I nodded and went back to sleep. The next day, I was finally better and was let out, but was told to not be too reckless in case it came back. I sighed in annoyance that so many things have happened this year and a flimsy fever was the one thing that kept me down for so long. Then I smirked. 'I guess I'm not as tough as I thought.' I thought to myself.

[the next day, third person POV]

Eric and Kieta had become less social, why nobody knew, except Ruby. Eric told them that they were just working on upgrades, which wasn't too much of a lie. The others just were hyped about the tournament next week.

"I can't believe it's already almost time! The tournament is going to be so much fun! But of course, I, the great Papyrus, will lead us to victory! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus cheered.

"At least someone's excited." Sans said.

"You bet I am! This is finally the time where I can show off my strength and at the same time not have to capture a human! This is going to be the best week of my life!" Papyrus cheered.

"To be honest, you weren't very good at capturing anyway." Ruby said.

"Yeah, you're right. The cage I was going to put you in would have been too big for you anyway." Papyrus said.

"Well, we still have a week until the tournament, so let's at least finish the semester strong." Undyne said.

"She's right. The more we train, the better we'll be." Alphys said.

"You just agree with anything Undyne says, don't you?" Yang joked.

"Because I'm always right." Undyne chuckled.

"That's... debatable." Alphys said awkwardly.

"Well, hey, look on the bright side. We only have seven more days until the tournament, and seven days to practice before the tournament." Sans said.

"And I expect you'll be doing the same training you always do?" Ruby asked.

"Yup. Sitting around and being cool. What I'm best at." Sans chuckled.

"Well, he's right about him being best at that." Weiss sighed.

"Weiss, I think you shouldn't be so rude to Sans when he has an arsenal of puns at his disposal." Blake said.

Weiss sighed as she remembered the amount of puns he made in the Underground. "Fine."

"That was a quick change in attitude." Sans said.

"She's just jealous she can't make as great of puns as you." Yang said.

"I'm not jealous! I just don't want to lose any brain cells today." Weiss said.

"Queue the cold shoulder puns." Blake sighed.

"Nah, that one's getting old." Sans said.

"It's kinda blown over by now." Yang said, high fiving Sans.

"So, anyway, what do you think Eric and Kieta are working on?" Kerási asked.

"Most likely either an awesome laser death cannon or an added finger. Either one would be cool." Yang said.

"Why would they add a finger?" Ruby asked.

"I dunno." Yang shrugged.

"It would be kinda cool to have six fingers." Kerási said.

"What's wrong with five fingers? Six is an unlucky number!" Papyrus said.

"True." Yang and Kerási said.

In the workshop that Eric and Kieta were allowed to work at, they were attaching parts to a giant robot, some being armor, a few times being claws. They took a second to admire their work. It was a fifteen foot tall giant robot with Pistons in the legs to absorb falls, all the limbs held together by magnetic servos. The left arm had most of the armor, along with a big hand with claws, which was the main damage dealer. The right arm served as a medium range blaster able to shoot electricity balls. The face was still in development, but it was planned to have an energy skull with a helmet on it, the energy skull able to fire a death laser.

"Project V01D is almost complete. If push comes to shove, it can operate as it is." Eric said.

"All thanks to your big brain." Kieta said.

"Well, to be fair, I did download a few programs on making badass robots." Eric said, tapping his head.

"When will you not show off?" Kieta chuckled.

"I think the better question is what is there not to show off?" Eric joked.

"You do have a point. Though, do you think Void will be able to stop Gira and Flowey?" Kieta asked.

"If not, the world is royally screwed." Eric said.

"No kidding." Kieta chuckled.

"But let's hope that they aren't as tough as I'm expecting." Eric said.

"And I expect you will fight me no matter my strength." A familiar voice chuckled. They turned to see Gira, but unarmed. "Don't worry, I'm not here to fight. I came to warn you."

They observed him, Eric checking his neurotransmitter to see he wasn't lying. "What do you mean?" Eric asked.

"I should tell you, I was assigned by Adam to kill you two, along with a bonus pay for killing team RWBY. I just want to warn you: he is trying to awaken two great forces. Your only chance of survival is to escape Remnant. There is a shuttle just outside of Vale with your names on it. If you want to leave, I will not follow you. I've seen how you two fight and I respect you. I understand that you, Eric, want to protect Kieta. I respect that. I'm not a heartless monster like you think. If you want to leave Remnant or stay and perish, I will not stop you. Think it over." Gira said, vanishing.

"Two? I know he's going to awaken Flowey's true power, but what is the other force?" Eric wondered.

"Flowey was bad enough, now we have to deal with another?!" Kieta said.

Eric thought about what Gira had said. A shuttle that would take them to another habited planet, and they would be safe. Or perish along with everyone else here.

"Eric, what do we-" Kieta asked.

"We stay. We fight to the end." Eric said.

"But what will happen to us?" Kieta asked.

"Probably die. But as long as we die with our friends, I'll be happy to fight until death." Eric said.

"Well, look at you, maturing." Kieta said.

"I lived on Remnant my whole life. I'll die to protect it, even if we're facing two unstoppable forces." Eric said.

"That's a little bit of a dark way to put it, but I agree. But should we tell everyone else?" Kieta asked.

"If we tell them, they'll go and fight them. Sure, they can fight, but if we go now, they'll awaken Flowey's true form early. That would endanger everyone." Eric said.

"So keep it a secret until it happens? Fair enough." Kieta said.

"But for now, let's take a break. Void may be incomplete, but working 24/7 isn't exactly healthy." Eric said.

"Last time we tried to do that, we ended up eating all the scraps." Kieta said.

"Never has the phase iron stomach been more correct." Eric joked.

"Though those scraps were actually pretty tasty." Kieta said.

"Man, we are weird. Let's go and get some real food." Eric said.

"I don't see the problem with eating metal. All the cool bots are doing it." Kieta joked.

"And last time we did that, we ended up having the Atlas remove shrapnel from our esophagus." Eric said.

"That's beside the point." Kieta said.

"Thank God kids don't take after you, otherwise we would be making the White Fang's job easier." Eric sighed.

"So I have a few bad habits. Doesn't mean all the apples are bad." Kieta said.

"Speaking of apples, I could go for a few right now." Eric said.

A while later, they exited the workshop and went to lunch with everyone else. By the end of the day, they had literally sent the memory of Gira's warning to the backup drive.

[BONUS SEGMENT, White Fang hideout]

"So they didn't heed the warning. Shame, would have made our job easier." Adam said.

"But sir, I actually do admire their fighting style. And all Eric wants is for his sister to be happy. Maybe we could capture them instead." Gira said.

"No. They must die. Didn't I hire you to kill them? So do your job." Adam snarled.

"But sir-" Gira said.

"No buts! We are planning the destruction of all of Vale, and you're having sentiments for two kids." Adam said.

"If they're just two kids, why hire a professional to kill them? If you're so confident, why not just send one of your own to take care of them? Or is it that you can't handle a whole army by yourself?" Gira shot back.

"Do not question my leadership, boy. I hired you to kill, not to be a thorn in my rear. So do your damn job and kill me two children." Adam snarled.

Gira sighed and nodded. He knew that arguing further would eventually either cut his pay or piss him off, and he knew not to do either or. But he wasn't a heartless monster. Eric is a noble fighter and one worthy of respect, and Kieta is just a kid at heart. He would have to strip his emotions away to kill them and not feel anything.

'Maybe... am I siding with the wrong people?' Gira thought.

A/N

Seems like Gira is having thoughts on Adam. Will he betray him and join with the others? Or will his memory be wiped like Eric and be turned into a slave? And what fate awaits for our heroes? Will the tournament tip in their favor? Or will something unforeseen happen? Stay tuned and find out on Rose of the Underground!

And now for me. Thank you all so much for your support! Now, I am going to be taking some breaks from writing, but I should rephrase. I'm not going to completely stop this fanfic. I'm just putting schoolwork ahead right now. But fear not: this fanfic will continue, just probably not as often. Also, my computer is still broken. Just thought I should update you guys on that. 'Kay bye.


	28. Chapter 28: Getting Ready

Chapter 28: Getting Ready

The next day, classes resumed, everyone getting ready for the finals. Team PAUS was unfamiliar with finals, but team RWBY and JNPR, along with Vasha and Kerási, educated them in how they worked.

"So basically it's like a test with most of your grade riding on it? Wow, that is a real social life killer." Undyne said.

"All it really is is a test covering everything we've worked on through the entire year." Ruby said.

"You got to be kidding! How many sadists are in this school?!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"You'd be surprised." Kerási said.

"Wait, we don't actually have to take them all in one day, right? RIGHT?!" Undyne asked.

"Not all of them. They have it so half the tests are one day and the other half are the next." Weiss explained.

"Oh, thank God. They aren't completely sadistic." Alphys said.

"I wouldn't go that far. They are still sadistic, but they aren't brutal." Kerási said.

"Yeah, thanks for the blue sky and sunshine." Sans said.

"Why would anyone want to be put through this?! This is freaking torture!" Papyrus said.

"This is first year." Yang said.

"THIS IS THE WORST WEEK OF MY LIFE!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"And there goes the excitement for the tournament." Sans said.

"You're not the least bit worried?" Alphys asked.

"Oh, I'm terrified. I'm just not as dramatic as you guys." Sans said.

"Well, he does have a point." Undyne sighed.

A short while later, after the drama, they continued studying. On a few occasions, Eric would come into the library and plug a cord into his head to the computer, probably downloading all the answers. At times, they would try to get the answers out of him, Kieta always having to freeze everyone and drag Eric away.

A few days later, it was the weekend, the semester finally at an end. They decided to celebrate by dueling. Ruby decided to finally have that duel with Asgore and everyone gathered at the arena.

"I hope to have a fun battle with you, Ruby." Asgore said.

"I hope so too, Asgore." Ruby said.

The buzzer sounded, signaling the fight to start. Asgore drew his weapon, a blue trident infused with ice and electric dust. He called it Winter Storm. Ruby drew Crescent Rose and they fought, the blades clashing and sparking. Asgore spun Winter Storm and sent a blizzard at Ruby, keeping her back. He then had the ice melt and touched it with the electric side, sparking the water and sending Ruby flying. She shook it off and switched to her lower power blaster setting, firing at Asgore, who deflected the shots.

"I'm not an easy target, so don't hold back." Asgore said, slashing at Ruby. This time, Ruby responded by clashing against him, their weapons turning into a red and blue blur, sparks and other elements flying. Their speed was matched, their strikes almost mirrored. They fired and swung, each time being countered by the other. It seemed like the fight would go on forever until Ruby got a strike in, taking advantage and striking him down, ending the fight.

"Wow. That... was really... fun." Ruby said, catching her breath.

"That was a good fight, Ruby. Now I have no doubt you will win the tournament." Asgore said, getting up.

Next was Undyne and Weiss. They engaged, the two using their strategies they honed for years to try and get an advantage on the other. Weiss tried to use various Dusts to get Undyne off her balance, but she was a greater warrior than she anticipated. Undyne tried adjusting Beast Catcher in length, power, and even using dust to strengthen it, but Weiss countered every attack. Undyne then used her special attack, making Weiss's soul appear and turning it green.

"I hope she knows how to use a shield." Papyrus said.

Fortunately, Weiss adjusted to her situation quickly, blocking Undyne's strikes and striking when she saw an opening. Undyne was at a disadvantage now. Then, she had an idea. She returned Weiss's soul back to red and threw her spear at her, knocking her off balance. Undyne then attacked quickly, sending Weiss's aura down to red, ending the fight.

"A fine match. Though your stance was off by a slight bit." Undyne said. "And yes, I did go easy on you."

Weiss was slightly annoyed at the last statement, but she knew when she was beat. "It was a fine match. I hope that someday I can learn a thing or two from you." Weiss said.

Next was Papyrus and Yang, Papyrus drawing Meatball in it's spiked form. "Prepare to eat a plate of delicious pasta defeat!" Papyrus said.

"I'll pass. Pasta isn't really my favorite food." Yang said.

The match began, the two charging and sending each other back from the power of their strikes. Papyrus waited to use the special attack, instead ducking down and spraying spikes at Yang, who leaped away from the needle storm. She then went up to Papyrus, punching and hoping to find an opening. Papyrus struck her back and sent a few bones at her, hitting her with a few of them.

"Now, taste defeat with my special attack!" Papyrus said. Nothing happened.

"Um..." Yang said awkwardly.

"Where's my special attack?!" Papyrus exclaimed, then looked in the crowd to see Toby in the distance with his special attack. "TOBY, YOU MEDALLING CANINE! COME BACK HERE WITH MY SPECIAL ATTACK!" Papyrus roared, but to no avail. Toby was startled and ran away. "Oh, come on! Not again! Ugh, fine. Taste defeat with a completely normal attack." Papyrus sighed.

Papyrus then sent a volley of bones at Yang, a few knocking her aura down a bit. Soon, Papyrus was gasping for air, exhausted.

"Well... it's clear... you can't... defeat me." Papyrus gasped.

"So tie?" Yang asked.

"Sounds good. Hey Tori, you got some spare pie?" Papyrus asked, flopping face first in exhaustion.

"He'll be fine. Just give him a few minutes and he'll be back to normal." Sans said, setting him up on a chair, trying to make sure he doesn't flop down again.

They had a few more matches before calling it a day, everyone even more exited about the tournament than ever. The sun was starting to set, so they went back to their dorms to rest for the tournament. Meanwhile, Eric pulled an all nighter in the workshop and continued working on Void.

"Let's see... if I put two energy propellers on here... and put an energy stabilizer right here... yeah, that seems good." Eric said to himself, auto building a few parts.

"John, when are you going to get some sleep?" Kieta asked.

"Kieta, please stop calling me that." Eric said.

"Why? Eric is just your code name. The brother I know is called John." Kieta said.

Eric thought for a moment. He knew his name was nothing more than just a code, but this was Kieta. She would probably annoy him until he finally agreed. He sighed. "If that will make you happy." Eric said.

"Thanks John. Now, what are you working on?" Kieta asked.

"Just enabling flight on Void. If I can make an ion drive, then it will allow energy to make it go faster than ever. I also need to make some energy stabilizers to keep it from... exploding in a nova." Eric said.

"Alright, cool. We could also use the stabilizers to enhance the arm capabilities." Kieta suggested.

"Not a bad idea. Alright, enabling auto build to do the job for us. Isn't tomorrow the tournament?" Eric asked.

"Yeah, it is. That's why I came to get you to bed. You don't want to miss the others annihilating the tournament, do you?" Kieta said.

"You got a point there. Alright, let's go." Eric said.

They exited the workshop and went off to their dorm, Eric falling asleep instantly. That night, he had a dream. It was the normal nightmare, the village burning down, everyone dying, but something, or someone, caught his eye.

A black haired cat Faunus. She was standing a distance away, eyes wide with horror. Eric knew she was part of the White Fang, but looking at her, she seemed like more of a pacifist than anything. Then he realized it was Blake. Many emotions coursed through him: anger, confusion, sadness.

Then it shifted to Beacon, but more. It was in complete ruins. And at the top was... Flowey in his true form. He was sitting on the Beacon tower like a throne, but there was also a figure too dark for him to see. They seemed to be frozen, but he didn't know why or how. They seemed to be in shock about something.

Then, an alarm. His dream made him so paranoid that he punched the alarm clock, smashing it in two. His breathing was heavy and sweat was starting to form on his forehead.

"John? Are you alright?" Kieta asked.

"No. I had a dream- no, a vision. The two forces that Gira warned us about. He was right. They will destroy Beacon and use it as a throne." Eric said.

"That sounds... unpleasant." Kieta said.

"However, they seemed to be frozen in time. And it wasn't like your ability. They were completely frozen, like time was completely stopped for them." Eric said.

"Now I'm jealous of that person." Kieta said.

"Kieta, this is serious." Eric said.

"I know, but you're just stressing too much. Today's the tournament. Can't you go for one day without worrying about the White Fang or Flowey?" Kieta asked.

Eric sighed. "I guess I am a little too paranoid. Alright, fine."

"Let's go then! I bet the others are waiting!" Kieta said, the two going off with the three teams to the tournament at last.

The arena was not was team PAUS was expecting. It was a giant coliseum in the sky with some sort of ice under it. Soon they landed and headed to the locker rooms where they got ready for the matches.

"So what team are you guys up against?" Papyrus asked Ruby.

"I think it was team ABRN of Haven Academy." Ruby said.

"I did some looking on the participating teams. They're kinda tough." Undyne said.

"So kinda nervous." Ruby said.

"Hey, kiddo, you got this." Sans said.

"Yeah! And whenever you're feeling down, just remember you always have a skeleton inside you. And if that skeleton is even half as cool as me, then you're in for a treat! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus said.

"Heh, thanks guys. I'd better get going. See you after the round!" Ruby said, exiting the locker room.

Team RWBY entered the arena and saw crowds cheering from the stands. The others were pretty exited.

For Ruby, seeing the vast crowd and the opportunity to show her skills filled her with... DETERMINATION.

A/N

Sorry for the short chapter. I really didn't know what else to put here. But yes! Season 3 is finally in play! I already have some things in plan, so a few suggestions would be very much appreciated for improving those plans. Anyway, I imagine seeing the start of season 3 in this fanfic...

fills you with DETERMINATION!


	29. Chapter 29: Battle of the Best

Chapter 29: Battle of the Best

The fight began, the environment set to glacier and volcano, an interesting combination. Weiss used the glacier setting to her advantage and used her ice dust to get her target off balance. Ruby went up against Bolin, the two clashing their weapons in an attempt to gain an upper hand on the other. Yang held off Arslan, the two having a fist fight of interesting proportions. Blake was having trouble fighting Reese, due to her hover board weapon, having her often use her clone to take some hits, which was starting to wear her down.

"Ho ho! What an exciting match! This is a fine way to start off the tournament, wouldn't you say Professor Oobleck?" Port said.

"Doctor. And yes, I'd say this is a brilliant start to the tournament." Oobleck said.

"For those just tuning in, welcome to the Vytal Festival Tournament!" Port said.

"For those who are new to this, allow me to break down the rules. There are three rounds in this: teams, doubles, and singles." Oobleck said.

"Correct. And the winners of the team rounds choose two of their teammates to advance into the doubles round." Port said.

"Who then chose one more to go to the singles round. Age, species, and school year are irrelevant. The only aspect being tested is skill." Oobleck said.

"Correct. In fact, this is the first Vytal Festival Tournament with the inclusion of the monster race." Port said.

"Indeed it is, Peter. And these are some fine spectacles in which to spectate on, and I don't think anyone is going to disagree with me on that." Oobleck said.

"Ah, and why would they? Now, let's get back to the match with team RWBY of Beacon and team ABRN of Haven." Port said.

As the announcers went on, Yang decided to stay away from the ice environment, but Arslan decided otherwise and slammed her into the area, which made her slip and slide, letting Arslan get a good hit on her. Nadir was about to finish her off, but a dust round froze him to the ground.

"I got your back!" Ruby said.

"And who's got your's?" Bolin said, about to swing down on Ruby, but a black glyph and a push from Weiss saved her.

"My BFF." Ruby said.

"No." Weiss replied, rushing off, and Ruby fist pumping.

Bolin broke off a chunk of rock from the volcano environment and threw it to Reese, who inserted it into her hoverboard. She then flew it over Nadir to melt the ice keeping him in, him giving the thumbs up. Reese then saw Blake standing near the edge and smirked.

'Too easy.' Reese thought, spinning the board in a way that would have normally knocked Blake out, but the clone vanished, and Gambol Shroud make a stop for Reese, and Blake then kicked her out of the arena.

"Ooh, Reese is down by knock out and aura level!" Port said.

"Oh, she really should have worn a helmet." Oobleck said.

Meanwhile, Weiss was fighting off Nadir and soon knocked him into Bolin. She then encased them in a bolder of ice and sent them to go off the edge. Arslan sighed in annoyance and went into the path of the bolder, making a series of hand motions and punching the bolder, shattering it like glass.

"Yang!" Weiss yelled. She then created a ramp of ice for Yang. "Now!" Yang got the idea and slid onto the ramp, grabbing Gambol Shroud and shooting Ember Celcia. Ruby then went under Yang and used herself as a spring, letting Yang fly at the three and knock them out with one powerful punch.

"And that's game! The winner is team RWBY of Beacon!" Port announced.

"We... did it?" Ruby said. She looked to the others to see them giving the thumbs up. "We did iiiiiiiiii-is anyone else starving?"

"I might have worked up an appetite." Blake said, her stomach letting out a loud growl.

"Gee, if only there was some place we could get food." Weiss said, showing they were in the fair grounds. "Oh wait."

"It's okay Weiss. I sometimes forget about the fair grounds too." Ruby said.

"I was being facetious." Weiss said.

"Wha-gah! Well, if you were hungry, why didn't you say so?" Ruby said.

"Come on, I think there's a Grillby's somewhere." Yang said.

"It might be hard to eat without this." Emerald said, holding up a wallet. Ruby frantically searched her pockets and saw her wallet wasn't there. "Heh, good to see you, Ruby."

"Thanks Emerald. Ugh, girl pockets are the worst." Ruby said.

"Hey, what's up Em." Yang said.

"I just got done watching your amazing fight. You guys were awesome!" Emerald said.

"Oh, stop it." Ruby said.

"So, how'd your team do?" Yang asked.

"Yeah, it seems like we never get to see your other teammates." Weiss said.

"Oh, yeah, they're... We did fine. So, who's going to the doubles?" Emerald asked.

"Well, as the leader, I thought long and hard about this decision." Ruby said.

"We put it to a vote." Weiss said.

"A-I-um-yes, but I decided we should put it to a vote." Ruby said.

"We voted for Weiss and Yang." Blake said.

"I will happily represent team RWBY." Weiss said.

"Yeah, we're going to kick some butt." Yang said, punching her fists together.

"That's great." Emerald said.

"Hey, you want to come get lunch with us?" Ruby asked.

"That is so nice of you to offer, but my teammates are a bit... Introverted." Emerald said, looking over to Mercury, who was sniffing a boot with a confused look. "Very socially awkward."

"Ooh, yeah." Yang said.

"So I guess we'll see you guys later." Ruby said.

"Yeah, see you later." Emerald said, walking off.

"How's the new friends?" Mercury asked.

"I hate them." Emerald said.

"Shame." Mercury said.

"It's just... How can they be so happy all the time?" Emerald asked.

"Did you at least get what we need?" Mercury asked.

"It's the heiress and the bimbo." Emerald said.

"At least we know who we're working with." Mercury said.

Soon, team RWBY found a Grillby's and took a seat, team PAUS soon joining them. "Hey guys! You did amazing out there!" Papyrus said.

"Thanks buddy." Ruby said.

"We should celebrate with some spaghetti of my own design!" Papyrus cheered.

Everyone flinched at the thought. "Maybe next time, Papyrus." Ruby said.

"Aw, come on! Toriel even gave me a few tips on cooking!" Papyrus said.

"We can have some celebratory spaghetti later." Ruby assured.

"Yo Grillby, can you hit us up with some burgers? And..." Sans whispered something to Grillby, who nodded. Soon, he came back out with eight burgers, Blake's being her favorite.

"Sans, you are the best person ever." Blake said.

"I know." Sans smiled.

"Lunch is on me." Weiss said, handing Grillby a credit card.

"What's the occasion?" Yang asked.

"Consider it thanks for sending me to the doubles." Weiss said, her pride short lived by her credit card being thrown back at her, the cash register saying 'denied.' "What? How can my credit card be denied? I was barely into my monthly allowance."

Blake panicked and tried to secretly take the burger with a nonchalant look on her face, but Grillby took the burger from her. "Noo..." Blake whimpered.

"Maybe I can help?" Pyrrha said.

"Oh, you don't have to." Yang said.

"But she could!" Blake said quickly.

"May we join you then?" Jaune asked.

"Sure! Great food is to be shared with great friends!" Papyrus said.

"Way to make things awkward." Undyne said.

"What did I say?" Papyrus asked.

"Grill, hit us up with four more." Sans said.

A short while later, everyone had finished their food and Grillby took the plates to be washed.

"You think it's a good idea to eat before we fight?" Pyrrha asked.

"All ideas are good ideas!" Papyrus said, Nora letting out a large belch.

"Ugh, if I throw up, I blame you." Jaune said.

"Oh! Aiming at the enemy!" Nora said.

"Nora, that was disgusting. But if you feel the urge..." Ren said.

"Thanks." Jaune said weakly.

"So, how you feeling about this?" Undyne asked.

"We got this. We have a world renowned fighter, basically a ninja, Jaune, and I can bench ten of me. And we've been improving a lot the past months, Glynda barely yells at us anymore, and... Jaune!" Nora said.

"You gonna take that?" Ren asked.

"She's not wrong." Jaune said.

"I'm joking. He knows I'm joking. I mean, the worst thing that can happen is that we lose, and we have to walk around school knowing we're total failures and our friends will abandon us to preserve their social status, Ren and I don't have any parents so we have no where to go, and we'll be officially called team Loser-PR!" Nora said, visibly becoming greyer and greyer until she flopped down sobbing.

"So yeah, we're feeling pretty good." Ren said.

"Will team JNPR please report to the arena." Port said over the announcements.

"Yes, like they were supposed to... several minutes ago." Oobleck said.

"This is it. Wish us luck." Pyrrha said, the team walking off to the arena.

"Anyone else notice Ren's voice is slightly different?" Papyrus asked.

"Yeah, I think we shouldn't ask." Sans said.

"Anyway, let's get to the arena to see them." Ruby said.

"Oh yeah, Kerási and Vasha saved us some front row seats! We get the best view of the action!" Papyrus said.

"Awesome. What about the cyborg twins?" Yang asked.

"They're at Beacon, working on themselves. They said they'll watch our fights online." Undyne said.

"Fair enough. Let's get going." Ruby said.

They got to the arena, sitting in the front row where Kerási and Vasha were.

"And now, the match between team JNPR of Beacon and team BRNZ of Shade." Port said. The random environment roller began, the side of BRNZ being forest and JNPR's side being mountains. "Match start in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! Fight!"

As the fight began and the two teams charged, May went into the forest and got a perch on a tree, starting to snipe. The swords clashed and sparks flew, Ren noticing the sniper in the trees and jumping out of her aim. "In the trees!" Ren exclaimed.

"Nora, mind taking care of that?" Jaune said.

"On it!" Nora said, bombarding the area of the sniper, who jumped out of the way just in time. The craters and smoldering made a heart in the arena. Nolan then attacked, electrocuting Nora, who seemed to not care about the shocks.

"Oho! One of my favorite students, Nora, is charging her semblance!" Port said.

"Wait, what?" Nolan said.

"Yes. Her semblance allows her to make electricity to power her muscles, or, in this case, absorb Nolan's attack, like she is doing right now." Oobleck said.

"What?!" Nolan exclaimed. Nora then swung her hammer at Nolan, knocking him into his teammate.

"Nora! Get to the mountain!" Jaune said after seeing the lightning at the top of it.

"Gotcha!" Nora said, climbing the mountain. The team held off BRNZ to prevent them from interfering with Nora. After a while, she reached the top, raising her hammer Thor style and absorbing the lightning. She then jumped from the mountain and struck down to the team, knocking them all together.

"Alright! Time for a team attack! Nora, Ren, Flower Power!" Jaune said.

"What?" Ren asked.

"Flower Power. That's your team attack." Jaune said.

"Since when?" Ren asked.

"Guys! We talked about this! Ren brings the flower, Nora brings the power!" Jaune said.

"Why would I bring a flower?" Ren asked.

"Not A flower, silly. Flour, as in baking!" Nora said.

"What's our team attack then?" Pyrrha asked.

"Pyrrha!" Jaune exclaimed

"Sorry, I just want to know ahead of time." Pyrrha said.

"Our team attack is Arkos." Jaune said.

"Arkos?" Pyrrha asked.

"Yeah, it's both our last names put together." Jaune said.

"Oh, okay." Pyrrha said.

"What, do you not like it?" Jaune asked.

"No, it's a good name, just-" Pyrrha said.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Brawnz yelled.

"Trying to have a team meeting, thank you very little." Jaune said.

"We're in the middle of a battle!" Brawnz yelled.

"AND WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A TALK! WHAT DON'T YOU GET ABOUT THAT?" Jaune yelled.

"Uh, Jaune?" Pyrrha said.

"Yes Pyrrha?" Jaune asked.

"I think he means we're all in the middle of a battle." Pyrrha said. Jaune then realized that they were indeed talking in the middle of a fight.

Jaune sighed. "Nora, just... hit them with the hammer."

Nora smiled wickedly and charged at the team, knocking them out with one swing.

"And team BRNZ loses by knock out! Literally. Seriously, can we get someone to check on them?" Port said.

"That was something. They should check up on their team attacks before battle, though." Undyne said.

"Though that was pretty entertaining." Yang said.

"Yeah, it was." Undyne chuckled.

"I feel like I've seen Nora's power in some sort of comic before." Alphys said.

"Yeah, I think you're right." Undyne said.

"I think it was by... Marble or something?" Alphys said.

"Doesn't matter. She's awesome either way." Undyne said.

"Hey, come on! Our fight is up next!" Papyrus said.

Team PAUS then went to the lockers and got ready for their fight, Undyne reloading the dust chambers of Beast Catcher, Alphys cycling Thunder Razors, Papyrus sharpening the spikes on Meatball, and Sans... drinking ketchup and being Sans.

"Sans, I think Funny Bone is starting to become a little blunt. You might want to sharpen it." Undyne said.

"Oh, I don't have Funny Bone with me. I felt it with Eric to sharpen it for me." Sans said.

"Then what are you going to fight with?" Undyne asked.

"Awesome jokes." Sans said.

"Surprised I didn't see that coming." Undyne sighed.

"Well, this is it team! Fear not, for I, the great Papyrus, will lead us to victory! Sweet, delicious victory! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus said.

"At least one of us is at the top of their game." Sans said.

"Let's put some effort into this!" Papyrus said.

"Don't you mean... some backbone?" Sans joked.

"If jokes were actually weapons, I would be less concerned about you." Papyrus said.

"They are weapons. They really tickle your funny bone." Sans said.

"Please just stop." Alphys said.

"Yeah, save the jokes for the fight." Papyrus said.

"Alright, if you say so." Sans shrugged.

"We ready team?" Papyrus asked.

"Good to go." Undyne said, raising Beast Catcher.

"Alright, follow me guys. I know a shortcut to the arena." Sans said, walking in the opposite direction to the arena. They followed and soon appeared at the entrance of the arena. "Told ya."

"I've begun to stop questioning you, Sans." Undyne said.

"Probably a good idea." Alphys said.

[meanwhile, Beacon]

Weiss was running to the ship that had just landed while Ruby struggled to keep up. "Weiss! What are you so excited about? Who's here?" Ruby asked.

Her question was answered by a tall woman exiting the ship. She looked like Weiss if she had joined the military. "Winter! I'm so happy to see you- I mean... Your presence pleases me." Weiss said.

"Beacon. It's been a while. The atmosphere here seems different." Winter said.

"Well, it is summer, so..." Ruby said, Weiss punching the back of Ruby.

"So, how are you doing?" Weiss asked.

"I've been doing fine, though I am curious to how you have been." Winter said.

"Oh, I've been doing alright." Weiss said.

"And who is this?" Winter asked.

"Oh, this is Ruby, our team leader." Weiss said.

"Uh, yes! The honor is... in my... court." Ruby said awkwardly.

"So this is the Ruby that you have been telling me about. How... underwhelming. Leave us." Winter ordered the guards, then sighed. "How have you been doing?"

"Oh, right. My grades have been doing fine, and-" Weiss said, being interrupted by Winter smacking her head.

"I did not ask about your grades, you boob. I meant how are you doing? Are you holding up well? Are you keeping in check?" Winter asked.

"Well, yes. Ruby has been doing a good job as a leader." Weiss said.

Ruby giggled. "Boob." Ruby said, tapping the bump on Weiss's head.

"I see. I would also like to see your quarters to make sure they are up to standard." Winter said.

"Oh, sure. And just a note in advance, the bunk beds only look unstable." Weiss said.

"Bunk beds?" Winter asked.

"I shall... meet with you... in... another... juncture! Juncture, that sounds right." Ruby said.

As the two sisters were walking, the robot soldiers in the back were torn apart by a man with black hair, a red cape, and less than classy clothing. They turned to see the man. "Winter. It's been a while." The man said.

"Qrow. I can have you punished for destroying Atlas property." Winter said.

Qrow then looked at the robots he took out. "Oh. Oh, I'm sorry. I mistook them for sentient trash." Qrow said in a sarcastic guilty voice.

"Wait, you two know each other?" Weiss asked.

"Weiss, you should leave." Winter said.

"Yeah, Ice Queen. Listen to big sister. She'll protect you, just like how Atlas is going to protect us all." Qrow said.

"I don't know if you know what you're saying, but if you do not bite your tongue," Winter said, unsheathing her sword. "then I will gladly remove it for you."

Qrow swept back his hair. "Come get it, then." Qrow said. Winter then rushed at him, stabbing where his head was. She stabbed again and again, but Qrow simply moved out of each stab, making different silly expressions each stab. He then bowed and she struck downward, only for her strike to be blocked by Qrow's sword. They then took a fencing stance, connecting their blades a few times before fighting, strikes and strikes again. Soon, they became a blur of movement, each time they collide a storm of sparks taking their place.

Ruby ran up through the crowd to see the commotion. "Weiss! What is going on?" Ruby asked.

"Some crazy guy just started attacking my sister!" Weiss said.

"Who the heck would do tha-t is my uncle!" Ruby said.

"What?!" Weiss exclaimed.

"Kick her butt, Uncle Qrow!" Ruby shouted.

"Uh, make him pay, Winter!" Weiss yelled.

Their blur encounters soon stopped, their swords connected and soon Winter spun around and kicked Qrow in the face, but he barely faltered, his eye gleaming with both anger and enthusiasm, a wicked smile across his face. He slashed again, this time using the momentum to fly into the air and slam down, making a crater in the walkway. Winter then went up the walls, getting a better distance from Qrow. Qrow shifted his sword into gun mode, shooting at Winter.

He then leaped to the area where Winter was, Winter pulling out her second blade, getting a better advantage against Qrow, their swords clashed, sparks flying and their blades a blur once again. Qrow then leaped up and blasted Winter, an explosion enveloping her. He checked from a distance to see if he actually got her.

He didn't. She leaped into the air, knocking them both onto the ground. She created a large white glyph behind her and charged it. Qrow activated his sword to change, the blade curving for a second, then his expression changed to a smirk as he deactivated his mode change, sheathing his sword. Winter looked at him with surprise until she taunted her to come after him. This cracked her, as she rushed to him, about to stab him in the gullet.

"Schnee!" Ironwood bellowed, making Winter stop inches away from Qrow's throat.

"Yes, sir." Winter said.

"I thought I told you to not cause commotion during your visit." Ironwood said.

"But sir, he started the fight!" Winter protested.

"That's not true. She struck first." Qrow said.

"Is this true?" Ironwood asked. Winter didn't answer, her head down in shame. "As for you, Qrow." Ironwood snapped, Qrow pointing to himself in a fake confused way. "Why are you here?"

"I could be asking the same question, Jimmy." Qrow said.

"Now, people. Let's not have this discussion with everyone watching. Meet in my office." Ozpin said.

Ruby pushed through the crowd and hugged Qrow's arm. "Hey Uncle Qrow! Did you miss me? Did you miss me?" Ruby asked, a wide smile on her face.

"Nope." Qrow said, rustling her hair.

"Qrow!" Ironwood shouted, Ruby falling off his arm.

"I think I'm in trouble." Qrow said.

"You did kind of blow a hole in the front of our school." Ruby said.

Qrow chuckled. "Yes I did, didn't I?" Qrow said, rubbing her head.

"I can't believe he's your uncle." Weiss said.

"You're just upset that he kicks butt." Ruby smirked.

"That was a tie at best." Weiss said.

"Yo, what was all the commotion about?" Eric asked.

"Just my uncle and Weiss's sister fighting." Ruby said.

"Makes sense. Uncle... Qrow, right? Yeah, I met him before. Nice enough guy when he's not drunk." Eric said.

"Which is never." Ruby chuckled.

"Fair point." Eric said.

"Wait, you met him before?" Ruby asked.

"I went downhill a few times." Eric said.

"I can see that." Ruby said.

"I just saw team PAUS's match. They won." Eric said.

"Awesome!" Ruby said.

"I just pray to God Papyrus doesn't make us some celebratory spaghetti. Even my taste programs wouldn't be able to block that crap." Eric said.

"No kidding. Though I hear he is actually getting better." Ruby said.

"Thank God." Eric sighed.

"Let's go and congratulate them." Ruby said, pulling Eric and Weiss along.

"Not like we have a choice." Eric sighed, the three taking a ship to the arena.

A/N

Season 3 START! Man, I never expected to have those words said in this fanfic. I know I say this a lot, but I never expected for this fanfic to become this popular. So thank you all for staying with me through 29 chapters! Also, as I said a few chapters back, the next chapter is the deadline for OC requests. This is your last chance to request your OC, so if you want to see it in this story, send me a PM and I'll see what I can do. Anyway, for those hyped about the big fight, I'm right there with you. I can't wait to write about it. So thank you for sticking all this way with me, and I will be updating soon.


	30. Chapter 30: Turning

Chapter 30: Turning

Qrow was patiently waiting in the elevator, though slightly annoyed he had been greeted in this way. Though, he was slightly used to it. He then reached the top, the elevator door opening.

"That is still no reason to just attack like you did." Glynda said.

"He was drunk!" Winter defended.

"He's always drunk!" Glynda said, her point proven by Qrow drinking from his flask. He paused momentarily once he saw everyone staring at him. He looked from his flask to them and back at it, then shrugged.

Ozpin sighed. "Qrow, please explain your reason for being here."

"Why is she here?" Qrow asked, pointing to Winter.

"Winter, we will discuss this matter later." Ironwood said.

"But sir..." Winter said, then sighed. "I understand, sir." She said, saluting and walking off to the elevator.

"I know who our enemies are. They are here, and they aren't monsters. Well, not the monster race, but monsters in mind." Qrow said.

"We know this." Ironwood said.

"Oh. Oh, so you KNOW. Well, it's nice to know that I'm risking my hide out there to keep you all informed!" Qrow said.

"Gentlemen, please. We have our reasons. Qrow, do you have anything else?" Ozpin asked.

"Yes. The one that the cyborg teen told you about, Gira, he's... not exactly a pet project anymore for the White Fang." Qrow said.

"The White Fang hasn't made any moves since we locked up Torchwick. They could very well have scattered." Ironwood said.

"That's the problem. You cut off one head of a King Taijitu, but the other one is waiting to strike. We don't know where or when, but it's coming." Qrow said.

"And when they do, we'll be ready." Ironwood said.

"What? With that army out there?" Qrow asked.

"When the people see my army in the sky, they will feel safe, comfort-" Ironwood said.

"What? You think the White Fang will be scared of that? I've seen them, and the are fear. Now tell me, Jimmy, when you were sending your toys here, did you think you were being discrete? Or did you just not give a damn?" Qrow said.

"Discrete wasn't working. We had to make a more direct approach." Ironwood said.

"And trust me when I say, the White Fang is not scared of your toys." A voice said. Behind Qrow, a shady figure had appeared and everyone reached for their weapons. "Do not be alarmed. I am unarmed." Gira said, holding up his hands.

"You are a weapon." Ironwood said.

"Very sharp, Jimmy. But I am not here to cause any fighting. I am here with good intentions." Gira said.

"People, please do not fight. Let him speak." Ozpin said, everyone lowering their guard.

"At least someone's willing to listen. The White Fang, as you suspected, Qrow, are waiting to strike, but not in the way you think. They are past protesting now. Humanity, Monsters, and Faunus are on the brink of war. So tell me, Ozpin, after hearing this, do you still think we are at peace?" Gira said.

"Peace will remain until the world falls apart." Ozpin said.

"Hmph. Should have expected as much. You're oblivious to the world around you. It could crumble today and you would still see peace. Qrow, you are not wrong for your thinking. The White Fang is going to awaken something, but this is far more than you think it is. Grimm will be the least of your worries once their plans are through." Gira said.

"What do you mean?" Glynda asked.

"The White Fang are gathering the things they need to awaken the two most powerful forces of Remnant. To be honest, peace is far from still here. Our enemy... your enemy... is waiting for the time to strike. It could be now, it could be never, but they will wait for our weakest point and their strongest hand before they attack." Gira said.

"And what do you have to make us trust you?" Ironwood asked.

"Nothing. You have no reason to trust me, I get that, but if you do not heed my warning, people will die. Innocent people. I suggest you think it over." Gira said, vanishing into the shadows. His voice still echoed, "war is coming. And you will need all the heroes you can get."

"So what now?" Glynda asked.

"We continue to train our hunters and huntresses. Whether they be human or monster, we should be ready, even if Gira was lying." Ozpin said.

"Finally, someone gets it." Qrow said.

[the next day]

Winter had left to return to Atlas, Qrow was staying with Ruby and Yang for a while, and team PAUS was starting to get to know him. Sans was the most fond of Qrow, unsurprisingly.

"There are sometimes where I don't get your fashion senses." Sans said.

"Well, back then, it was a nice choice." Qrow said.

"Fair enough." Sans shrugged.

"Talk about fashion senses, your brother literally wears a costume everywhere." Qrow said.

"Hey! This is not entirely a costume! This is my battle body!" Papyrus protested.

"Whatever you say, Paper." Qrow chuckled.

"I don't get you humans sometimes." Papyrus sighed.

"If you want to get real about fashion choices, your niece literally wears a dress into battle." Undyne said.

"To be fair, this is a battle skirt. It's way easier to fight in this than jeans." Ruby said.

"She has a point." Qrow smirked.

"Oh, whatever." Undyne sighed.

"Hey Undyne, are you mad? Why don't you turn that friz-down upsidizity?" Yang chuckled.

"Oh my god, shut up Yang." Undyne said, face palming.

"You really can't let go of that, can you?" Sans said.

"What? I can't like my own shows?" Yang said.

"You've been making that reference for the past week now, Yang." Undyne said.

"Told you she would get into it." Qrow chuckled.

"So who's next up in the tournament?" Papyrus asked.

"I think it's team SSSN and NDGO." Ruby said.

"Hey Qrow, you should try Grillby's sometime. He's pretty cool." Sans said.

"Been there. Guy's quiet for the most part." Qrow said.

"No big surprise there. Let's get to the tournament." Yang said.

"I'll catch you guys later. I just got to do something real quick." Qrow said.

"Okay, see you later, Qrow!" Ruby said, the six heading off to the arena. Eric and Kieta were still working on their pet project, so they weren't there again. Kerási told them Vasha went off to get them some snacks and that she would be back soon.

"At least we got some snacks and a good view." Yang said, sitting back in her seat.

"And now, the match between team SSSN of Haven and team NDGO of Shade. Though SSSN's leader grew up in Mistral, I'm sure his family in Vacuo is proud." Port said.

"Go Neptune!" Weiss cheered.

Neptune was waving to the crowd then saw the opposing team. "Ladies." Neptune said, trying to be suave.

Weiss lost it. "Kick his butt, team NDGO!"

"Remember ladies, hands above the waist." Neptune said.

"Ignore him, for he's... yeah, he's dumb." Sun said.

The environment roster started, NDGO's side being desert. "Alright, home field advantage." Octavia said.

"Don't get cocky. I lived in Vacuo too." Sun said.

"And ocean." Port said.

"Wait... what?" Neptune said, eyes wide at the ocean symbol on the roster, letting out a small noise, signifying he was scared as crap.

"Uh, what's wrong with Neptune?" Ruby asked.

"Oh no." Blake said.

"Oh no what?" Ruby asked.

"Neptune is afraid of the water." Weiss sighed.

"Irony at it's finest!" Papyrus said.

"No kidding." Sans said.

"Match begin!" Port announced, Neptune almost vanishing to the other side and on top of a hill.

"Neptune, what are you doing?!" Sun exclaimed.

"Getting a height advantage!" Neptune said.

"On the enemy side?!" Sun said.

"They would never expect it!" Neptune said.

"He's not wrong." Dew shrugged.

Sun sighed and charged, along with his two companions. As the battle raged on, Vasha snuck out and came across Eric, who seemed reluctant to run into her. "Hey Eric. Didn't think you were here. How's your pet project going?" Vasha said.

"We both know why I'm here. So don't try to change the subject." Eric said.

"Of course. I can't be sure of any connections, but there are some suspicions." Vasha said.

"The three. Emerald, Mercury, and Cinder. I have also had my suspicions on them, but I could never be sure. I didn't want to risk the chances of them actually being normal people. But... something just screams at me that they are responsible for this. That they were... ugh, since Ozpin brought me back from the White Fang's control, my memory has gotten foggy." Eric said.

"Well then what about the White Fang? Is there anything you know they would do?" Vasha asked.

"They're taking souls. To awaken Flowey's true power. I have a plan to stop him, but I'm not sure if he's up to it." Eric said.

"Who?" Vasha asked.

"The only other person who knows Flowey inside and out. The one who was infused with him. Asriel." Eric said.

"Asriel? You mean that little kid? The one who is the child of Toriel and Asgore?" Vasha asked.

"The one and only. I figured if he was a monster, he could take souls as well. And, from what I've gathered from Ruby, he can return souls to their rightful host." Eric said.

"No. You can't be serious." Vasha gasped.

"Yes. If it means to save the world, then I don't think anyone would hesitate. Flowey and that... thing will destroy all humanity and, hell, probably all life on Remnant." Eric said.

"So what? We just wait for them to attack?" Vasha asked.

"It's the only thing we can do. Besides..." Eric said, pointing his thumb towards the stadium. "There's a tournament going on right now. It's not enjoyable if we don't settle down and relax."

Vasha couldn't help but smile at the boy's childish view at the situation, even though he knew perfectly well what would happen. If she was honest, it was people like that that made the world nicer. They went back to see team SSSN had won the match, their friends cheering for them. A while later, after a few more matches, they decided to go and get some snacks between the match making.

"It's rather enjoyable watching teams from other kingdoms and their styles of battle. Now I can see why you wanted to know so much about them, Weiss." Undyne said.

"Well, that and it gives us an upper hand knowing the competition." Weiss said.

"You and your strange ways." Undyne chuckled.

"At least she's working for something. Though, an argument can be made she's a little obsessed with it." Sans said.

"There's nothing wrong with knowing more about your opponent." Weiss argued.

"Can't say she doesn't have a point." Undyne shrugged.

"By the way, Vasha, what were you talking with Eric about?" Sans asked.

"Oh, he was just asking for some information. Though, he told me not to talk about it." Vasha said.

"Does the wolf Faunus have a crush on the cyborg?" Sans joked.

Vasha scoffed. "As if. He's not my type."

"That's what they all say." Yang smiled.

"You two are very invasive of other people's personal life." Vasha said.

"And?" Sans said.

"Ugh, whatever." Vasha sighed.

"Changing the subject, this is the last match of the day. Let's just get the snacks and get back to the arena." Alphys said, clearly wanting to move on.

On the way back, Ruby split from the group to get something she forgot in the locker rooms. However, once there, she was met with the talking shadow.

"Ruby Rose. I have some information that you might need." Gira said.

"And that is?" Ruby asked.

"That your world, everything you think you know, is about to change. I am not here to harm you. Rather, I am here to warn you." Gira said.

"About what?" Ruby asked.

"That war is coming. This tournament is only a step in the whole scheme. Although, you were able to hold off this war by freeing the monsters. Although, it has also shaken something far from friendly. Have you ever wondered why Grimm never come near Mt. Ebott?" Gira said.

"Yeah. But what does that have to do with me?" Ruby asked.

"What I'm trying to get to is that you are the one person I fear most. You want to know why?" Gira said.

"Um, why?" Ruby asked.

"Your determination. The absolute power to reset everything. However, that does not make you entirely invincible. That is why I fear you. You are vulnerable yet stronger than anyone else on Remnant. I was given a contract from Adam to assassinate Eric and Kieta, along with a bonus payment for killing you. Eric and Kieta, I was fine with. But when I heard you were my extra contract, I decided to avoid you. But now, I see there is more to both you and the twins than meets the eye. You are a strong warrior with noble reason, and Eric is the same. But, Kieta is just a kid at heart, just like you. Maybe that's why Eric has taken a shine to you. But you are the only person that can change history, the only person that can rewrite timelines, the only person that could free an entire race from an underground prison. Tell me, how many people in the world have done something so kind and huge?" Gira said.

"Um... I don't know. But... why do you say this?" Ruby asked.

"Because you need to know this: you can change the outcome of this war. Whether the people or the Grimm come out on top is your decision. One victor can take one try, the other could take thousands of tries. But victory on both sides is possible. You are the only one who can decide the outcome." Gira said.

"How do I know you aren't lying?" Ruby asked.

"If I was lying, I would be dead. You wouldn't have hesitated to kill me when you saw me. If I was lying, I would have already killed you. But know this: the world will not wait. This war is coming, whether you are prepared or not." Gira said, vanishing into the shadows. Ruby exited the lockers and pondered what he said.

'What did he mean by 'I wouldn't have hesitated?' Does he really know about determination that much? Who is he anyway? I'll have to ask him next time I see him.' Ruby thought, heading back to her friends.

A/N

So yeah, I'm back from the dead. I was just refreshing my RWBY lore and stuff so I didn't miss any important details. For those wondering why I haven't posted in such a long time, 1) because school work and finals have kept me busy, 2) I have another fanfic that I was working on, and I got a bit carried away with it, and 3) I'm going on vacation soon, so that's also a factor that kept this story down. But, we carry on. So thank you all for your patience and I will do my best to make sure this story lives to the very extent of it's potential. Also, since I have no originality, I'm sorry to say this story will end at the end of season 3. I hate saying it as much as you guys hate seeing it, but I just don't have any ideas as to how to carry this story any longer than there. But, as I have been told by a few, I will be reinserting Mettaton soon. And there will be some relation between him and Penny, so look forward to that. Not in a creepy way, just... you get what I mean. Actually, is Mettaton a him or her? Someone tell me, I get confused with that. Anyway, till next chapter!


	31. Chapter 31: The Beginning of the End

Chapter 31: The Beginning of the End

"Ugh, waiting for the freaking barrier to shatter was bad enough, but now I have to wait for the world to be my own." Flowey moaned.

"In due time, my friend. As I promised, the human race will be yours to rule, and Beacon will be your throne." Adam said.

"What is this second creature you're going to unleash anyway?" Flowey asked.

"A Grimm that has slumbered in Mt. Ebott for centuries. Have you ever wondered why Grimm seem to keep their distance from the mountain?" Adam said.

"I always thought it was because of the monsters there. Now that you mention it, I can see that. But... what kind of Grimm is it?" Flowey asked.

"Lets just say it's an ancient Grimm that can rival even your power." Adam said.

"Heheheh. That strong, huh? I'm starting to like your thinking, Adam. How much longer until we can unleashed both it and myself?" Flowey asked.

"When the people's hope and trust wavers the most and their protectors are at their most vulnerable. Then we strike." Adam said.

"That should be able to attract every Grimm within a thousand miles. With that kind of army... heahahha! I absolutely love it! You really know how to dominate a kingdom." Flowey laughed.

"We only need one more soul for you. Then, all preparations will be complete." Adam said.

"No need. I already have one target in mind." Flowey said, smiling wickedly. His though process was on the person that was the most dangerous, the one who freed him of Asriel. Ruby.

"Very well then. I shall have Gira put her on his top priority then." Adam said.

"No. It must be me that kills her. She is too strong for that weakling. He fears her more than any. And for dang good reason too. But in this fight, I will win. Her determination will be no match against a god. I will be her best nightmare." Flowey said.

"Alright then. I will tell our field team to act when they see fit." Adam said, pressing a few buttons. Flowey chuckled wickedly as he untangled into the ground.

[the next day, the arena]

Penny's match had just ended and Ruby went over to congratulate her, Penny doing her usual thing and tackling Ruby in a hug, almost rivaling Yang's bear hugs.

"Oh, Ruby! I almost forgot! I want you to meet my newest friend!" Penny said, dragging Ruby over to Mettaton.

"Oh, hey Mettaton." Ruby said.

"Ruby, darling! I see you met my newest friend! Fabulous! That makes introductions way less complicated!" Mettaton said.

"You know him already?" Penny asked.

"Yeah, we... uh..." Ruby said.

"We battled at one point. At the time, it was to the death, since I saw her as a threat, but now she is one of my closest friends. Also, sorry about that." Mettaton said.

"No problem, Mettaton. Everyone in the Underground tried to kill me at least once. Except Sans, obviously." Ruby said.

"He doesn't seem to be much of a fighter." Mettaton said.

"Oh, you would be surprised. He can be strong when he needs to." Ruby said.

"Sans good at fighting? Blasphemy." Mettaton joked.

"Penny, we should be going." Ciel said.

"Can you give us just a minute?" Penny said. Ciel looked at her watch and nodded, backing up.

"So who is she?" Ruby asked.

"She is my teammate. She likes to keep an eye out for me. She's like Blake, only if she was ordered to watch you at all times." Penny said.

"So Weiss." Ruby clarified.

"Basically. Oh, and also Mettaton is on my team." Penny said.

"That's right. Penny's team got 25% more fabulous with me." Mettaton said.

"I see. Does she know about the... beep boop, does not compute." Ruby asked.

"Oh, no. Ironwood doesn't really want many people to know. There was an incident with a magnet, but I managed to pull it off." Penny said, recalling the time when she had a sun hat covering the magnet, and the three of them laughed.

"Well, at least you have been doing fine." Ruby said.

"Penny, it has been exactly one minute." Ciel said.

"I'll see you again later, Ruby." Penny said, the three walking off. Ruby waved as they went, returning to the seats.

"So how's Mettaton getting along with Penny?" Alphys asked.

"Pretty well, actually. Mettaton's on Penny's team." Ruby said.

"No real surprise there. You came back just in time, too. Yang and Weiss's match is about to start." Undyne said.

"Really? Who's the-" Ruby asked, looking down to see the contesters. "Okay, did not expect that. And they're from Atlas?"

"Yup. I think they are just as surprised as you are." Kerási said.

"I would think so. They don't seem to be the most... ordered of all the teams." Ruby said.

"Well, that's still to be seen." Blake said.

The match started and Flynt's trumpet created an eardrum rupturing noise, sending Yang flying and leaving Neon to chase after her. The match already seemed to be against Yang and Weiss, and it grew even more so as Neon taunted Yang with each missed strike. Eventually, Flynt was about to attack Yang as Weiss was seemingly down, but his guess was wrong as she charged him, the two of them inserting an eruption.

"And it looks like Weiss Schnee and Flynt are out! Actually... oh no! It looks like Weiss Schnee's aura level has completely depleted!" Peter Port announced.

"She sacrificed herself to save Yang. Damn." Undyne said.

"Wait! Flynt is still standing!" Port announced, Flynt rising.

"Nice try, Schnee." Flynt said, brushing himself off. That is when Yang lost it. Her hair blazed bright yellow, almost as bright as the sun.

"And it looks like Yang is pretty mad, and let me tell you, you won't like her when she gets angry." Port said.

"Oh, they are in for it now." Ruby chuckled.

"Now I see why she doesn't like people touching the hair." Alphys said.

Flynt attacked, but it seemed to do near nothing to Yang as she powered through it, slowly getting closer to the poor man. He played harder and harder, but his effort was fruitless as she cut the attack off and punched all his clones out of the ring, along with Flynt himself. Neon was skating along, her skating flawless until she tripped on a rock, letting Yang get a clear shot and blasting her into a geyser and knock her out.

"And that's the match! The winner is team RWBY!" Port announced.

"We should probably check up on Weiss to make sure she's alright." Blake said. Ruby nodded and they rushed down to check on their fallen teammate. Thankfully, she wasn't in too much pain. They carried her off to the medical ward and got her treated, thankfully not taking too long.

[meanwhile, the beacon workshop]

"Dang, Weiss has got some guts." Eric said.

"I hope she's okay." Kieta said.

"Nah, she's totally fine. A little fire won't kill her. She's gone through way worse." Eric said.

"Yeah, you're right. So, you think Void is ready for a test run?" Kieta asked.

"Yeah. Let's take him for a walk." Eric said. They went out to the Emerald Forest and deployed Void. The skull lit up dark blue and it stood up straight.

"Project V01D, ready for service. What do you ask of me, Master Eric and Mistress Kieta?" Void said.

"Alright, start up process is check. Now for the big moment. V01D, go into the forest and bring us the head of a Beowolf. Specifically, one with a marker. I put its code in your system. And kill any other Grimm you may come across." Eric commanded.

Void nodded and jumped into the forest, instantly after it vanished a blue light emitting and exploding, Eric able to see a Beowolf arm fly into the air.

"That's a good sign." Eric said.

"At least it can fight." Kieta said. They waited for a few minutes before Void finally came back with a Beowolf head in his hand, the marker on his head still in tact.

"Impressive. You went above and beyond what I expected. I like that." Eric said.

"What else do you ask of me, my lords?" Void asked.

"I believe that is all. V01D, deactivate." Eric said. Void saluted and powered down. They put him back on the cart and took him back to the workshop, refilling his energy.

"Wow. He didn't even go down to 99%." Kieta said.

"That means the power efficiency is well above average. I'd say he's ready for a real fight." Eric said.

"We can't be too sure. I'll run a few more tests on him. Why don't you go ahead and check with your friends?" Kieta said. Eric sighed and left the workshop, heading to the arena. The final double match was just ending as he entered, making his search less complicated as he ran into the teams.

"Hey Eric, you just get here?" Ruby said.

"Yeah, you know sisters." Eric chuckled.

"You and me both." Ruby laughed.

"So how did the match go?" Eric asked.

"It was awesome! Undyne and Papyrus are a really good team!" Alphys said.

"I would think so. So I guess that means the singles are tomorrow?" Eric said.

"Tonight. We voted that Undyne will go to the singles." Sans said.

"And Yang is going on." Ruby said.

"Well that will be an interesting match. I can't wait to see it." Eric said.

"Well, let's wait for the big moment." Ruby said. They all returned to the arena to see all the competitors all lined up, everyone waiting to see who would go against who.

"Our first singles match will be between Yang Xiao Long and Mercury Black. All other fighters please leave the arena." Port announced, all the other fighters leaving. After a few inaudible words from both sides, the match started. Yang attacked first, letting Mercury dodged the strike and return it with a swift kick to her arm, and another one to her chest, sending her back. Yang quickly recovered as Mercury charged at her, Yang dodging out of the way of Mercury's kick and grabbing his leg, throwing him back.

Mercury tumbled a bit before regaining balance and dodging Yang's volley of strikes, attempting a kick to her face, which was blocked by her gauntlet. She blasted his foot away and delivered a swift punch to his jaw. He stumbled back as he felt his jaw, making sure it wasn't dislocated.

"Heh. Not bad, blonde." Mercury said. He kicked and sent a shotgun blast at her, which she rolled out of the way of. She then charged at him and swept his legs, delivering another punch to his side and making him fly. He regained balance as she charged again, delivering two blows to his stomach and adding it with an uppercut, finishing it with one last blow to his chest, making him fall on his side.

"And that is the match! Yang Xiao Long wins the match!" Port said.

"Better luck next time." Yang said, dusting her hands off.

"There won't be a next time." Mercury growled, flying at her in an attempt to kick her in the face, but she delivered a punch to his knee and brought him down. The audience was in shock at the outburst, and Yang didn't see why.

"Cut the cameras!" Port said quickly.

"Augh! My leg!" Mercury cried.

"That's what you get, you little-" Yang exclaimed, being cut off by some soldiers surrounding her.

"My God. Why would she just..." Undyne gasped.

"That doesn't seem like her to do that." Papyrus said.

"I mean, she can be kind of violent, but she's never gone this far." Ruby said.

"I would say something, but I don't think now is the best time for jokes." Sans said.

"Good observation. Still, there has to be a reason why she just..." Alphys said.

Yang was very confused as to why she was the one being treated as the wrong doer, until she looked up to the screen to see Mercury standing perfectly still and offering a hand shake, and her punching him in the leg.

"There's no way she would do that... right?" Kerási said.

"I'm afraid I can't answer. She isn't that violent, but the evidence is flying in the face. But I know she wouldn't do that in her right mind." Vasha said.

"This should clear up soon. I know it." Ruby said, trying to be optimistic. The next day, they returned to the dorms and Yang was still a bit shaken.

"I swear, I saw him attack first." Yang said.

"It was just your head. Fights tend to bring a lot of stress, so your mind may have just been playing tricks with you." Weiss said.

"Coco said she had the same experience. She said Yatsuhashi was with her in the woods, but he never even went in." Ruby said.

"So you guys believe me, right?" Yang asked.

"Of course I believe you." Ruby said.

"It doesn't sound too crazy. I believe you." Weiss said. Everyone then looked at Blake, who was deep in thought.

"Blake?" Yang asked.

"I want to believe you, but what I saw was you attacking Mercury out of rage." Blake said.

"Blake, we know she wasn't in her right mind! She would never do that!" Weiss defended.

"I know you wouldn't attack someone like that. You were under a lot of stress, I get that. I want to trust you." Blake said.

"Thank you Blake." Yang sighed. They then heard a knock on their door. Ruby opened it to see team PAUS with a Nice Cream.

"Hey Yang, we thought you would want something to maybe help you calm your nerves, so we got you some Nice Cream." Undyne said, offering the treat.

"Thanks Undyne." Yang said, taking the treat.

"We don't blame you for what happened back there. It was just battle endured stress. It happens to the best of fighters." Undyne said.

"Yeah. Once during one of our practices, Undyne mistook me for a human and almost killed me. But I didn't put it against her, since she was just stressed out that day." Papyrus said.

"Sorry about that, by the way." Undyne said.

"Hey, no grudges held." Papyrus said.

"Thanks guys." Yang thanked.

"Hey, you guys mind if I talk with my niece for a little bit?" Qrow said. Everyone nodded and exited the room. Qrow took a seat on the bed across from Yang.

"Qrow, I was just stressed out. I didn't mean to hurt him." Yang said.

"I know. And right now, I have two conclusions. Either you were just really stressed out then or you're insane. And I really don't want to put you in a mental ward." Qrow said.

"I'm not crazy Qrow." Yang said.

"And I guess you seeing Raven that time on the train was also stress?" Qrow said, making Yang look up at him.

"How did you..." Yang asked.

"Then you did see her." Qrow said.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe I am crazy." Yang sighed.

"You're not crazy. You did see her alright." Qrow said.

"You're kidding." Yang said.

"Nope. You could say I have some contact with her. Though, she wanted me to give you a message. She wants you to know she won't always be there to save you. Though..." Qrow said, smirking. "I could let it slip that I know how you can find her."

"Are you serious?" Yang asked.

"But... that's not why I'm here. You should know that this 'peace' we have won't last long. The commotion you caused is making the Grimm more confident. And... remember your little friend Eric telling you about Gira? Well, he told me that there is a war coming, one bigger than the war between Faunus and humans. Heck, almost as great as the war between humans and monsters." Qrow said.

"A war? Why haven't you told Ironwood yet?" Yang asked.

"I didn't need to. He was there when he told me. Ironwood doesn't want to tell the public because that would make wariness, confusion, anger, fear- all the things that Grimm are attracted to. That would make our part much less defendable." Qrow said.

"So... so we just WAIT for them to strike first?" Yang asked.

"That's all we can do. Unless the White Fang suddenly decide to make a peace treaty to prevent the war. But, we know that won't happen." Qrow said.

"But what about the tournament?" Yang asked.

"I'm afraid I can't help with that. Your team was disqualified from it since, from their point of view, you lashed out at a young man. Guess you'll have to just watch from the sidelines." Qrow said.

Yang sighed as she laid back in her bed.

"I'll let you be then." Qrow said, leaving the dorm.

Later that day, the next match was made between Penny and Pyrrha. Penny seemed excited about the match, but Pyrrha seemed to be less motivated. Undyne saw that Jaune was also not in the brightest of moods.

"Hey, where is everyone?" Vasha asked.

"Ruby is in the back. She'll be here soon. Weiss and Blake are with Papyrus and Sans at Grillby's, and Alphys is comforting Yang. Eric and Kieta are back at Beacon still working." Undyne said.

"I hope they don't miss this." Kerási said.

[meanwhile, backstage, Ruby]

Ruby was staring down with Mercury, who was blocking her way. She got a strange sense of deja vou, kind of like the time back in the ruins when she fought Toriel.

"Mercury... why are you here? You shouldn't be able to walk." Ruby said. Mercury didn't respond. "What's going on?" Ruby asked. No response. "Fine. If you won't talk, then-" Ruby said, taking a step to the left. Mercury responded with a step to the right, still in front of Ruby. Ruby tested this and stepped to the right. Mercury went to the left. She then confirmed he was trying to stop her.

"The match between Penny and Pyrrha Nikos is about to start!" Port said.

"Oh no." Ruby said.

"Oh. Polarity and metal... not quite a nice combination." Mercury said.

"H-how did you..." Ruby said. She reached for her scroll, but Mercury shot it out of her hand.

"We don't want to attract attention, now do we?" Mercury said. Ruby tested her luck and tried to dash past him, but he kicked her back down. Ruby recovered and tried again, this time getting past. She made a mad dash and retrieved her scroll, running for her life.

Meanwhile, the match had started, the two sides fighting with brute force, Penny sending her swords at Pyrrha and Pyrrha blocking the strikes. She got in close and slashed, getting two hits on her, but she rolled out of the way of Pyrrha's third swing. Penny then charged the lasers and fired at Pyrrha, who either dodged the blasts or blocked them with her shield. Emerald was focusing on timing and waited for the moment. Then, it came. Penny rolled back and prepared to strike. That's when it happened. For Pyrrha, the swords multiplied. Ten, thirty, sixty, a hundred, on and on they multiplied. For everyone else, it was just five or six swords.

Pyrrha stepped back and looked in shock at the mass of weapons. Then, they flew. And that is when everything happened. Pyrrha did the only sensible thing and used her semblance to send back all the swords. Then, the wires got tangled around Penny, wrapping around her arms, waist, legs. Then, she broke like a twig. The swords fell to the ground as her now dismembered limbs fell, and then... silence. Shocked and surprised silence.

Ruby burst through the door just in time to see Penny die. And she collapsed to the ground, tears forming in her eyes. Mercury then smirked and shut the door behind him. Jaune was too shocked to even notice his mouth wide open. No one could do anything.

"Cut the cameras!" Port exclaimed.

"We're trying, but something's keeping them on!" A man said.

"What in the world is going o-" Oobleck said, but then the screen shifted to a figure of a king chess piece.

"This is not a tragedy. This was not an accident. This is what happens when you hand over your trust, your safety, your children, to men who claim to be our guardians, but are in reality nothing more than men. Our academies' headmasters wield more power than most armies, and one was audacious enough to control both.

They cling to this power in the name of peace, and yet, what do we have here? One nation's attempt at a synthetic army mercilessly torn apart by another's star pupil. What need would Atlas have for a soldier disguised as an innocent little girl? I don't think the Grimm can tell the difference. And what, I ask you, is Ozpin teaching his students? First, a dismemberment, now this? Huntsmen and Huntresses should carry themselves with honor and mercy, yet I have witnessed neither.

Perhaps Ozpin felt as though defeating Atlas in the tournament would help people forget his colossal failure to protect Vale when the Grimm invaded its streets. Or perhaps this was his message to the tyrannical dictator that has occupied an unsuspecting kingdom with armed forces. Honestly, I haven't the slightest clue as to who is right and who is wrong, but I know that the existence of peace is fragile, and the leaders of our kingdoms conduct their business with iron gloves. As someone who hails from Mistral, I can assure you the situation there is equally undesirable.

Our kingdoms are at the brink of war, yet we, the citizens, are left in the dark. So, I ask you, when the first shots are fired, who do you think you can trust?" Cinder said over the speakers.

During the speech, the border patrols were taken out by an army of Grimm, no one knowing what to make of it. Everyone was taken out of their shock and into a new one as a Nevermore landed above the arena.

"A Nevermore?! How'd it get past the borders?!" Port exclaimed. Everyone started rushing out, team JNPR still there, Pyrrha still in her same spot, and Ruby not moving. As for Mettaton, no one knew where he went.

"Pyrrha! Come on! That Nevermore is going to break through the barrier!" Jaune exclaimed, but to no effect. Pyrrha refused to move. Jaune grunted as he jumped down. As he did, the barrier shattered and the Nevermore fell into the arena. Jaune knew he wouldn't make it as the Nevermore struck down. "PYRRHA!"

The Nevermore's strike was deflected by a red blur as it revealed to be Ruby, one of Penny's swords in hand. Her breathing was heavy as she wiped tears from her cheeks. "You... you stay away from my friend!" Ruby yelled, charging the Nevermore and sticking the sword into its chest, the Nevermore screeching in pain. It flew up and around to charge Ruby, but a metal object brought it down. After that, more crashed onto it. Ruby then saw they were weapon lockers. It let out one last screech before dying. Then, several Hunters went on the body and got their weapons from the lockers.

"If we fight this war, we fight it together." Sun said.

"W-why would you..." Pyrrha said.

"It wasn't your fault. It was whoever was on the speakers. We'll find them, and we'll make them pay." Jaune said, holding out his hand for Pyrrha. Undyne also helped her up and gave her her shield and sword, which she took. They all looked up to see a new Grimm, one that looked like a gryphon.

"Gryphons! These are tougher than most Grimm, so-" Undyne exclaimed, being cut off by another Gryphon slamming her from the back. Everyone turned to the Grimm and were about to attack as a buckshot from the side killed it. Ruby helped Undyne up as they saw Port and Oobleck approach with weapons drawn.

"Students, evacuate with the citizens." Port said.

"But, we can help!" Ruby protested.

"Please, Ruby. This day will surely go down in history. I'd prefer it if my students could live to tell of it." Oobleck said in a softer tone. Everyone sighed as they exited the stadium, Gryphons entering as they left.

"Come now, my friend! One last match!" Port said, him and Oobleck back to back as Asgore and Toriel joined them.

"It will be an honor to fight by your sides. Hopefully, we will live to tell this tale." Asgore said.

"Talk like that, and we won't." Toriel smirked. Fire and buckshot then flew, slaying the Grimm around them as they charged in a fruitless attept to kill at least one of the hunters.

Meanwhile, the group of hunters and huntresses ran to the dock, more Grimm charging at them, but quickly shot down by Ironwood. "Get out of here. My men will take it from here." Ironwood told the group.

"Yes, sir. Come on!" Undyne said, the group running to the nearest evac ship as Ironwood bought them some time. As they flew off, Ironwood got a message from Ozpin.

"Ozpin, I am currently-" Ironwood started.

"Ironwood, you brought an army to my school. Use it." Ozpin interrupted. Ironwood nodded as he ended the call. He then sent out the word for his men to fend off the Grimm, the armada ships taking flight and shooting at the flocks of Nevermores.

Meanwhile, Blake, Weiss, Papyrus and Sans stood in the fairgrounds as it was enveloped in fire, Grimm ransacking the whole place. "How could this happen so quickly?" Blake said.

"Must have been those White Fang guys! They must have used those events in the arena to attract the Grimm!" Papyrus said.

"His guess isn't too crazy. Still, we have to-" Weiss said, a purple flash cutting her off. In front of them, four Beowolves were evaporated in a bright purple blast. From it came Mettaton, but he was now different in form. His right hand was now a cannon of sorts and he has energy wings on his back. Clearly from his face, he was crying earlier from Penny's death since it was drenched in oil.

"Those…. Those bastards will pay for my darling. They will die the most glamourous deaths ever imaginable!" Mettaton NEO roared, taking to the skies in an instant, raining bright blasts on the Grimm in his pure rage.

"We should help him. He alone can't fight all those Grimm." Weiss said, sending in her locker and grabbing Myrtenaster. Blake, Sans, and Papyrus did the same as they sent in their lockers and grabbed their weapons. They ran into the fray and fought the black monsters, helping Mettaton NEO.

[Meanwhile, Yang and Alphys]

After seeing the wildness outside, Yang snapped out of her depression and ran out of the dorm, along with Alphys and the two dogs, Alphys carrying Toby's battle armor. Yang pulled out her scroll and quickly dialed Weiss's number. "Come on. Pick up, pick up, pick up." yang muttered as they ran.

"Yang, is that you?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah, where are you?" Yang asked.

"We're in the fairgrounds fighting the Grimm." Weiss responded, grunting as she removed Myrtenaster from a Grimm.

"Is Ruby there with you?" Yang asked.

"No, I haven't seen her since the…" Weiss said, Yang slowing down in the halls. "Look, I'm sure she's fine. She is strong enough to take care of herself."

"Right. I'm coming to you guys right now." Yang said, hanging up and continuing to sprint down the halls.

[Meanwhile, Eric and Kieta]

"We have to release V01D. Everyone can't fight that many Grimm." Eric said.

"I know! I just have to finish the final sequences before we can let him go." Kieta said, quickly pressing buttons.

"Well, hurry! I don't know how long the energy barriers are going to hold the Grimm off for!" Eric said, shooting a bolt of electricity from his arm at the Grimm.

"Almost…. THERE!" Kieta exclaimed, pressing a big red button. Normally, those are bad, but this time, the restraints on Void went off as it booted up.

"Bootup sequence: complete. V01D Mk II, ready for initiative." Void said.

"Initiative, I like it. V01D, wipe out the Grimm in the vicinity of Vale and Beacon." Kieta ordered.

"Yes, Mistress Kieta." Void said. It then shot through the roof and blasted the Grimm outside the workshop.

"Good timing. Come on, let's help the others!" Eric said.

"Eric, Kieta, wait." Gira said. The two stopped to face him, half wanting to fight him. "Know that you will not be able to save everyone in this battle. This is the battle for Beacon, and only one person will come on top. Who, I cannot say. But be warned: some people will die, and not just the innocent." With that, Gira vanished in the shadows. Upon his leaving, the ground trembled and shook the place, an evil laugh echoing through the place.

"No…" Eric gasped.

A/N

CLIFFHANGERRRRRR! You know what's coming next chapter! That's right, your best nightmare! *clear throat* Anyway, sorry it took so long for me to update, but the vacation I took to Chicago took a lot of my time, but now I'm back and throwing a new chapter right at ya! Anyway, I don't want to drive this on, leave a review of what you hope to see in the next few chapters and please, give me some feedback on what you thought of the 'Penny-Mettaton-Interaction' thing. I thought this was a good chance to release Mettaton's NEO form, but please tell me what you thought of it. Anyway, see you next chapter!


	32. Chapter 32: Your Best Nightmare

Chapter 32: Your Best Nightmare

As the cyborg twins ran out, they saw a storm of plant tentacles in the sky, destroying a small building a distance away. As well, some military shipss started to fire at the source, but what was responded was a maniacal laugh and another storm of vines knocking a warship out of the sky. However, this did not stop. Another warship shot down another one, and it didn't seem to want to stop.

"Son of a taint! They must have freed Torchwick!" Eric exclaimed as he watched the warship shoot down friendlies.

"This is horrible. I never thought this would happen this fast, let alone be this bad." Kieta said. "Where are the others?"

"They must be on their way. God, I hope so." Eric said, the two unsheathing their swords, Kieta combining the blades as they ran toward the hordes of Grimm.

[Meanwhile, the transport ship]

The teams watched over the chaos, Ruby freezing up when she saw a storm of vines in the sky above Beacon. Everyone noticed this and saw what she saw, them all slightly freezing.

"W-what the heck is that?!" Sun exclaimed.

"Flowey. No doubt." Ruby said.

"How could he cause that, though?!" Undyne asked.

"He must have six human souls. But… why would he-" Ruby said, then realized why he only had six. "Oh, well that makes sense."

"What is it?" Undyne asked.

"He only has six because I am the last soul he needs." Ruby said.

"Well, he won't be getting your soul. He'll have to kill me before he can get your soul." Undyne said.

"She's right. We've all been through hell to get here, we won't be scared by a mutant flower." Jaune said.

Ruby looked back to her friends and smiled as she knew they weren't lying. Though she knew they might die that day, she was happy she might die with her friends.

"What's going on in the-" Undyne asked, but was quickly answered by Ironwood's transport exploding and crashing to the earth, everyone gasping. Ruby looked to the main warship and knew that something was wrong down there. It was the only one not firing at the Grimm. Then, she opened the hatch and jumped down to it. "Ruby, wait!" Undyne exclaimed, diving after her.

"What the heck are you two doing?!" Neptune exclaimed.

"Let them. They know what they're doing." Pyrrha said. They closed the hatch as the two huntresses dove down to the warship. They drew their weapons as they landed and crept to the command center. But before they could get there, they heard the sound of a camera and turned to see Neo with a scroll and her umbrella. They both knew that backup wouldn't be far, so Undyne switched Beast Catcher to harpoon mode and shot two energy spears at Neo, who easily dodged them. Ruby then fired two shots at Neo before switching back to scythe mode and charging Neo, both the shots and her swing missing. Then, a painfully familiar grenade crashed at Ruby's feet and sent her down the deck. She looked up to see Torchwick, holding off the strike of Undyne with his cane.

"Hey there Red. Long time no see." Torchwick chuckled, shoving back Undyne. Ruby growled and got up, firing a shot at him, only for it to be deflected by Neo. "Now now, that's not the way you greet an old friend." Torchwick taunted, firing another grenade at Ruby that sent her off the edge, but luckily she planted Crescent Rose into the side of the ship. "You know, I have had a lot of plans with you, but it seems I will have to just kill you. Shame, Flowey really wanted to kill you. Oh well, he'll get next best." Torchwick said, Neo unsheathing her needle blade. Ruby tried to kool for an opening, then saw the umbrella and noticed the wind. She formed a plan in her head and quickly opened the umbrella as Neo gasped as she flew away. "NEO!"

"Your plans won't work." Ruby said, getting up from the edge. "We will always fight, even when all seems lost."

"Oooh, you just do NOT give UP!" Torchwick sighed, smacking Ruby across the face with his cane and sending her onto her back. He then kicked Crescent Rose away from her as he began beating her. However, he did not notice Undyne flying at him, who then blocked a strike with her spear, then striking him multiple times, then barreling out of the way of a grenade, which blew up a distance away.

"Why do you do all this? Money? Revenge? Power? To show you're not some weakling?" Undyne said.

"I get nothing from this! I just want to see you guys fall!" Torchwick said, knocking Undyne next to Ruby. "You all think you're special, thinking the world will bend to your will! It's about time you all got what's coming! And as for me? I'll keep doing what I do best! Cheat, steal, and survive!" Torchwick exclaimed, a giant Gryphon swallowing him alive. Ruby and Undyne stared at it with eyes wide, then shook out of it as it charged them. Ruby leaped up and made it crash into the ship, exploding the inside. Undyne got up and the two looked for a way off without killing themselves. Ruby then grabbed Crescent Rose and smirked at Undyne, as she saw the plan Ruby was forming.

"You must be crazy." Undyne said.

"We'll see." Ruby chuckled as Undyne sheathed Beast Catcher and held on to Ruby as they ran off the edge, Ruby firing Crescent Rose to slow their fall.

[Meanwhile, Beacon]

Now, both Atlas and Grimm were destroying the place, and at the main courtyard, the teams were fighting two Paladins, having no luck. Then, Velvet stepped up. Coco nodded as she told everyone to stand back.

"What are you doing? She's going to get herself killed!" Weiss said.

"Just watch." Coco chuckled. Velvet held out her hand and a digital formation formed that looked exactly like Crescent Rose. She charged at the Paladin and slashed, the effect clearly significant in damage. It then changed to Myrtenaster, and she fired digital dust rounds from it, slashing off the arm of the first one. It then changed to Yang's gauntlets and she bashed at the Paladin, sending it flying. Then it changed to Gambol Shroud and she slashed at the other one. After that, a spear in her hand, which fired like a harpoon. It then changed to a giant mace with spikes, Meatball. She bashed the Paladin with it before changing to her left eye and hand being masked in a digital flame as digital bones rose underneath the Paladin, a giant digital Gaster Blaster firing at the Paladin, the entire top part being evaporated as the legs crumbled to the ground.

The first Paladin then blind sided her and sent her to the ground, her weapon deactivating. Weiss then took action and swiftly ran around, a giant glyph appearing behind her. She stepped in front of Velvet as a giant sword and arm slashed the Paladin in half. Weiss then looked at it in surprise to see her summon had worked. She then saw that Velvet had taken a picture of it, Weiss assuming it was for her weapon. The glyph then faded as another Paladin came into view.

"Oh, come on." Sun sighed. Everyone drew their weapons as they braced for the Paladin to charge. Then, the main warship crashed to the earth and the charging Paladin deactivated, crashing to the ground and rolling to a stop.

Then, a tower of vines crashed through a wall, making everyone fall back to see the monstrosity that was Flowey, and it was horrid. It has four eyes, two large arms made entirely of plant material, vines pouring out of the sides, tubes all wired up to support the massive energy, a giant vertical jaw with God knows how many teeth, and a screen on top with Flowey's face.

"Heheheh. You all think you can defeat this coming storm? This isn't just about Faunus rights or taking Beacon. No, I will become God of all monsters and mankind! But… I only have six human souls. I only need one more… BEFORE I BECOME GOD! However, fear not, because all your souls are too weak. I need a bit more… determination." Flowey laughed.

"Flowey!" Ruby shouted from the distance, her and Undyne landing somewhat safely.

"AHAHAHA! There is the final soul! Now you all will witness your friend die for my true form! Now… DI-" Flowey laughed.

"STOP!" Asriel shouted.

"Ah, my old friend. But it is too late, Asriel Dreemurr. Chara's essence is the only thing inside me. HE will not hesitate to kill all humanity. You will not convince me." Flowey laughed.

"I'm not here to stop you. Ruby is." Asriel said.

"Asriel, get out of here!" Ruby said.

"I know I shouldn't be here, but… I'm returning something I stole from you." Asriel said, a fragment of red appearing on his chest. Ruby's soul then shone on her chest, a fragment missing. Asriel's soul fragment the flew to Ruby's soul, the fragment fitting into the little spot and Ruby's soul shining brightly, the radiance almost blinding. "Ruby… please…. Save the world. Don't let monsters and humans be ruled under Chara. They don't deserve that. But… please… for me." Asriel said, fading into small bits of dust. "Ruby…."

"Asriel…" Ruby said shakily as her soul still shone. "Flowey… You want my soul? Then… come get it!"

Flowey then roared with laughter. "Come then, Rose of the Underground!" Vines then shut off the others, yelling at Ruby to run. But she didn't listen. She couldn't. Her rage against Flowey was now a flaming inferno. All she could think off is Asriel… and how she was going to avenge him. Flowey then let out his normal evil laugh as he attacked, light shooting from his eyes. Ruby tried to dodge, but they were too much, and already her aura levels were down to half. Ruby acted and sliced Flowey with Crescent Rose, only doing one damage to him. Then, a storm of vines homed in on Ruby, one piercing her chest as blood escaped it, as well as her lips.

"This is all just a bad dream." She heard Asgore say.

"And you're NEVER waking up!" Flowey laughed. Then, darkness. "Heheheheh. Did you think I would be satisfied…. Killing you only ONCE?" The fight then went back, the bullets shooting from Flowey's eyes. This time, Ruby managed to escape it with only quarter health missing. She sliced Flowey again, one health being taken. She tried firing at Flowey, but the bullets only bounced off his armor.

"HEAHAHAHA! You won't kill me THAT way!" Flowey laughed, vines homing on Ruby, but she was able to dodge them.

"Does this ever end?!" Ruby exclaimed. Then, the screen changed to a soul and a warning. The place then changed to a load of swords swinging around. Ruby rushed through and tried to find a way out, finding a large ACT sign. She got to it and called for help. The swords then shook and shivered and then changed to bandages, which restored her aura to full. Then, the nightmare continued.

"What- What the hell was that?! What are you doing?! WHY ARE THESE SOULS TRYING TO RESIST?! I AM GOD!" Flowey roared, Venus fly traps sucking in flies that hit Ruby as they went in, as well as bombs with Flowey's face falling to Ruby and scorching her hair. She quickly patted out the flames and sliced again, this time doing more damage, but not significant. "EVEN WITH THESE SOULS TRYING TO RESIST, I AM IMMORTAL! YOU WILL NOT KILL ME! YOU ARE JUST DELAYING YOUR UTTER PAIN AND MORTALITY!"

"That's the plan." Ruby said, the area shifting to hands waving out in circles. Ruby maneuvered through them and got to the ACT plate. "Please! Someone help!" Ruby cried out, the hands changing to giving the thumbs up as she regained aura.

"NO! I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS! TIME TO DIE, ROSE OF THE UNDERGROUND!" Flowey roared, a massive storm of vines flying at Ruby as she rushed through them. This time, though, Flowey rewinded time and got Ruby down to half aura. "HEAHAHAHAH! YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO CONTROLS THE TIMELINES NOW!"

Ruby was now frantic, trying to find a way to escape this nightmare. But there was no way out. The vices encasing her were too strong for her to cut down, Flowey's armor was godlike, and he possessed the same ability as her, except stronger. But, deep down, she knew that she could beat him. She didn't know what it was, but something was keeping her determination at an all time high. The area then shifted again to ballet shoes and musical notes, the shoes jabbing down at her. She ran through the shoes and found the ACT plate and quickly touched it, again calling out for help. The shoes then lifted and the musical notes turned green. Ruby activated her semblance and quickly got all the notes, her aura being restored fully.

"STOP HELPING THIS NAIVE CHILD!" Flowey screamed, now holding back nothing with a bash from one of his arms, missing Ruby by an inch as she slashed at him again, damage now rising significantly. She tried shooting again, but the bullets still did nothing. She figured his armor was too strong for even her rounds to pierce, but her blade seemed to be more than strong enough to pierce it. "YOUR WORLD IS CRUMBLING AROUND YOU, YET YOU'RE STILL THIS DETERMINED?! EH, IT'LL SERVE YOU WELL IN YOUR NEXT LIFE! YOUR DETERMINATION WILL BE THE CAUSE OF YOUR WORLD'S DOWNFALL ONCE IT IS MINE!" Flowey roared, releasing a storm of vines the nicked Ruby's shoulder, her aura dropping drastically. She cried out in pain as she gripped her shoulder, feeling her blood pour in her palm.

"Ugh… at this rate…" Ruby grunted. She tried to run, but a star hit her leg and made her falter, but she recovered quickly and ran for her life, doing all she could to survive, though she didn't know how long she could. Then, it shifted to frying pans tossing out fire balls from the pan, soon the ACT plate flying out and Ruby crying out with all the energy she could muster, the fire being turned to pies that restored Ruby's aura as well as closing the wound on her shoulder.

"WHO CARES! THESE SOULS CAN FIGHT AS MUCH AS THEY WANT, I STILL AM GOD, THEY ARE UNDER MY CONTROL! MINE!" Flowey roared, unleashing a storm of bombs to Ruby, who ran through them with blinding speeds. She then slashed at him again and did a much more significant amount of damage to him. She seemed to now be filled with more determination to keep fighting and surviving, but she still didn't know why.

"Ruby… keep fighting…" A familiar, yet distant voice muttered. Ruby looked around to try and find the source of the voice, as she knew it couldn't be Flowey, but she found no one. The area then changed to a computer like set as words of disencouraging sorts spilled out. She avoided them and got to the ACT plate and called for help. The words then changed to words of inspiration, as well as healing Ruby, but not all the way to full aura this time.

"WHY WON'T YOU JUST LET ME KILL YOU ALREADY?!" Flowey roared in pure anger. Ruby dodged the stars that flew from his eyes as she endured for the last soul to change the area. After a while, it did. There was a large gun shooting very large bullets at her, dodging with all the speed she could muster, grabbing the ACT plate and calling for help one last time. The bullets then changed to clovers, which restored her aura, but not very much.

"Now what?" Ruby asked as it changed to an empty area.

"They all want the same thing… to see Flowey die. But… you have the determination to let him live… to change him. If you don't stop him… all life will die. He uses the souls for hate and anger, that's what Chara is like, but you have both your power and mine… Asriel Dreemurr." Asriel said inside Ruby's mind. "That is why you are utterly filled with determination."

"Asriel… I will stop Flowey." Ruby said. The souls then restored Ruby's aura to full and the area shifted back to the nightmare.

"His defenses are down! Hit him while he's weak!" Asriel said.

"Right!" Ruby said, slashing Flowey, the damage highly damaging.

"AUGH! WHAT ARE THEY DOING?! THE SOULS! WHY THE HELL ARE YOU HELPING THIS CHILD?! RUBY!" Flowey screamed, stars flying from his eyes. Ruby didn't let this stop her, slashing twice at FLowey and taking his health down more. Then, the pace sped up, vines racing towards Ruby, but she was able to outrun them and slash multiple times at Flowey. "NO NO NO! I HAVE TO WIN THIS BATTLE! YOU CAN'T KILL ME! I AM GOD! I AM IMMORTAL!"

"The thing is, you use determination to kill. I use it to save. I am determined to show you mercy." Ruby said.

"STOP IT! YOUR DETERMINATION IS NOTHING! YOU ARE JUST A CHILD! I AM THE GOD OF REMNANT! OF THE UNDERGROUND! OF ALL THE UNIVERSE! DIE ALREADY, YOU NAIVE CHILD!" Flowey screeched, unleashing his bombs and everything he had in an attempt to kill Ruby, but she outran everything, jumping to the air and delivering the final blow. "NO! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE IMMORTAL! YOU- YOU!" Flowey roared. As Ruby thought it was all over, everything reset, his health full and his armor strong again. "You idiot." Flowey laughed, several vines piercing Ruby's chest. Then it reset, a laser killing Ruby, then the vines, laser, vines, laser, back and forth multiple times until she was clinging on by a thread. Then, bullets surrounded her, making her unable to make a move.

"D-dangit." Ruby coughed.

"Heheheh. You thought you could stop me? I am the God of this world. And you? You're hopeless. Hopeless and alone. Golly, that's right! Your pathetic friends… can't save you now! Go on, call for help. Cry into the darkness. 'Mommy! Daddy! Somebody help me!' See what good it does you!" Flowey laughed.

"P-please… Someone help!" Ruby cried. Then, silence.

"...But nobody came. Boy, what a shame! Nobody else… IS GOING TO SEE YOU DIE!" Flowey laughed as the bullets closed in on Ruby. She braced herself for death and closed her eyes… but nothing. In fact, the only thing she felt was the warmth of the bullets…. Healing her.

"W- how did you- well, I'll just-" Flowey said, trying to reset, but it didn't work. "W- where are my powers?!" Then, the souls surrounded Flowey. "The souls? What are they-" Flowey said, but the souls then spun around him rapidly, visibly draining his power. "NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO OBEY ME! NO! STOP IT! STOP IT! STOOOOOOOOOP!"

Then, darkness. Ruby couldn't see much, but she knew the vines still encased her. She knew that Flowey was still alive. Then, enough light escaped to show Flowey, cut and weak. She could kill him with one slash. But… she knew if she did, she would never go back. She then gave Flowey her mercy.

"W-what are you doing? Do you think I learned anything from this? No." Flowey said.

"That doesn't matter. I want to teach you that your rule in this world is wrong." Ruby said.

"What do you think you are accomplishing by doing this? Killing me is the only way to end this." Flowey said.

"No. Death doesn't solve anything." Ruby said.

"If you don't kill me… I'll come back! I'll kill you! I'll kill everyone you love!" Flowey laughed.

"No. You won't. Asriel's essence is still inside you. I know it." Ruby said.

"W-why? Why are you being… so nice to me?!" Flowey asked.

"Because I want you to see this world a different way." Ruby replied.

"I- I don't understand! I can't understand! I just can't understand!" Flowey said, running away crying. The vines then returned to the ground and brought Ruby back to the real world, Beacon still in chaos.

"Oh my God! Ruby!" Yang exclaimed,tackling Ruby in a Yang hug. "I'm so glad you're alive!"

"Thanks Yang. Though, I might not be if you keep this up!" Ruby said, attempting to escape the hug.

"Ruby, what happened in there?" Undyne asked.

"It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell it once we make it out of this." Ruby said.

"Fair enough. War stories are best told after the war. But… What happened to Flowey?" Undyne asked.

"I did my usual thing and spared him." Ruby said.

"You're too kind Ruby. What if he comes back?" Undyne said.

"Oh, he will. I'm sure we can stop him again." Ruby said.

"Yeah! Ruby can handle anything she faces!" Papyrus said.

"Come on, we sho-" Kerasi said, but was cut off by an earthquake emitting from Mt. Ebott. They all looked to it to see it erupt and a giant Grimm dragon fly from it.

"What the hell is that?!" Undyne exclaimed.

"Oh… my God. That… is one big Grimm." Vasha said.

"I bet it's a tough one, too." Yang said.

"What do we do about it?!" Sun exclaimed.

"There's no way we can take it on. It's way too strong. We HAVE to get out of here!" Ruby said. As she did, something quicker than the blink of the eye flew on it and vanished just as quick, clearly doing something to the dragon, due to the ear rupturing screech.

"Was that Mettaton?" Vasha asked.

"No way! He's no where near that fast!" Papyrus said.

"Doesn't matter! We have to go, NOW!" Undyne said. No one argued as they ran to evacuate.

A/N

Hey all, here's another chapter! I hope you all enjoyed the much anticipated battle against Ruby and Omega Flowey! I listened to Your Best Nightmare through the entire time writing it. Thank you Toby for the awesome soundtrack! Anyway, leave a review of what you thought, PM me if you have any ideas for the story, and I will leave this off with this: I lied before when I said the story will end at the end of Season 3. I will be making my own theory of how Season 4 will go down, along with the added Undertale characters and the OCs. That said, till next chapter!


	33. Chapter 33: Blind Rage

Chapter 33: Blind Rage

Eric and Kieta were fighting off the Grimm whilst the others fought the Paladins, back to back and knee deep in Grimm gore, Void flying in the sky and evaporating any Grimm that got too close to the others. Soon, the dome of vines appeared in the sky and the twins looked up to see it, in awe of the sheer power that dwelled in it.

"Ruby must be up there, fighting Flowey." Kieta said.

"No doubt. I'm sure she can manage, though. She's made it through worse." Eric said. They continued to slay the approaching Grimm, soon seeing Void being swarmed with Grimm of all types. "Son of a taint, they're overwhelming Void. We need to help him."

"Go. I can take these guys." Kieta said.

"But what if they start to overwhelm you?" Eric asked.

"Don't worry about me. I'll just freeze them all and get out. You have to save our creation." Kieta said.

"You make it sound weird when you put it like that." Eric said.

"Just go!" Kieta sighed. Eric nodded and flew to Void's aid, slashing off the Grimm on him. Void then was able to get rid of the remaining Grimm on him, sending a blast of energy at a Beowolf that was about to ambush Kieta. The two warriors then flew to the Gryphons and hacked them to pieces, making an alpha Gryphon dive into another Gryphon, killing both once Eric dove his blade into its heart.

"We won't be able to fight forever. Ironwood, you better get your damn backup here!" Eric muttered. He then landed next to Kieta and the two slashed through the hordes of Grimm, their hopes of surviving this rising steadily. As they thought it was all over, a Deathstalker managed to sneak up and attack. It's attack was aimed at Eric's heart, but Kieta saw this as it happened.

"ERIC!" Kieta exclaimed, pushing him out of the way of the strike. It all seemed to happen in slow motion for Eric. Void grabbed the Deathstalker by the tail and threw it out of sight, sending a missile at its direction and a Deathstalker stinger being flown across the battlefield.

"Kieta! Are you alright?" Eric asked, checking his sister. He then saw a huge gash on her side, the size of the stinger. "No no no NO! Please, stay with me! I'll get you to a medic, we'll make it out of thi-" Eric panicked.

"Eric… this is it for me. Only my machine marts are keeping me alive. The Deathstalker… hit my heart… I'm finished." Kieta said, her breathing heavy.

"NO! Don't say that! We've made it through the fires, we made it on our own, we're the only Aeilds left in the world! Please, don't leave me!" Eric screamed.

"John… you will live on… for me… for everyone… in the village… John…" Kieta said with her final breath. The failsafe then activated, her machine half now infused with Eric's

"Kieta! KIETA, PLEASE!" Eric yelled, shaking his sister in hopes she would awake from her wakeless sleep. When he realized she was gone, he broke. He let out a scream that would shake even the most hardened men and thunder erupted from his arms.

"You…. You Grimm bastards… really did it now. You want to see me give it my all? Heh heh. Well…" Eric said, his voice filled with pure hate. "COME AND GET ME, YOU HATE FILLED SACKS!" He then paused time and zoomed through the hordes of Grimm, guts and limbs and other substances flying, the Grimm never standing a chance. Then, the earth shook, and Eric saw a Grimm dragon erupt from Mt. Ebott and fly towards the school. "You will not kill any more people today, Adam! This is all your fault! I swear to God, you will die!" Eric yelled, disabling time in a larger vicinity than Kieta could ever have done. He then flew to the dragon and hacked violently, finishing with sending a stream of lightning at the dragon's side, then reenabling time, the dragon screeching in pain as Grimm droplets fell from it.

"Kieta… They all will die… I swear it!" Eric breathed. He could barely think straight, anger and hatred blocking his sanity and mercy as he flew into the fray, never faltering and never letting the enemy have a chance. He barely knew mercy anymore as he sliced an Ursa in half vertically, his mind racing, constantly using his machine halves to give himself the advantage. Then, he came upon a King Taijitu who knocked him down on his back. He snarled as he jumped for the neck and wrapped his arms around it, then letting go and flying up and landing on it's head and impaling his sword into it, sending a ball of electricity into the mouth of the other head, it's insides being fried.

His smile was now psychotic, his eyes wild with anger and insanity as he cleaved through the Grimm armies. "I am the last Aeild left on Remnant. My family and only sister are dead, as well as my entire village. I wield the two greatest machines to have ever been made. Those who dare to challenge me, may God have mercy on your souls." Eric said, but if the Grimm understood his words, they sure didn't care. Eric was now not even putting any effort into his swings, but they still cleaved through the Grimms' armor like a hot knife through butter. As he cleaved through, he saw something through the corner of his eye. His adversary and his one target.

Adam. Eric's eyes widened and he charged at him without a moment's hesitation, his blade aimed directly at his heart. As he swung, Adam swung too. And Eric fell, clutching his left arm as the now sparking stump drained of power.

"Such a shame you were brought back to your normal memories. We would have let Kieta live had you not turned against us." Adam said.

"Why? So she could live in the pain that her brother was turned into a mindless killer? Are you really that sadistic?" Eric said.

"It's simply how the world plays. Did I ever tell you why I burned that village down? Because of your family. They were gifted as one of the greatest warrior bloodlines to have lived on Remnant. And now, you stand alone. Now, that bloodline… will die." Adam said, raising his sword to bring the fatal blow.

"Kieta…. I'm sorry… but… we will be together… soon." Eric said, a tear escaping his eye. Then, darkness.

[Meanwhile, the teams]

"Hey, where's Eric?" Yang asked.

"Last I saw him, he and Kieta were fighting a ton of Grimm. He may be at the food court now." Weiss said. Yang nodded and ran to the court.

Meanwhile, at the court, Adam's blade was intercepted by another's. Blake's.

"Eric, get out of here!" Blake said.

"Blake, come with me! You don't stand a chance against him!" Eric said.

"I'll buy you time. You have to live, for your family's sake!" Blake said, surprising Eric that she knew about his family bloodline. Then he remembered that she was once a part of the White Fang and guessed she was there. He nodded and ran out of the food court.

"Why do you do this, my love? We could have made peace in this world!" Adam said.

"What 'peace'? This? This is not what I wanted! I wanted the Faunus to be respected, not feared!" Blake said.

"That is how the world is! Fear controls even the strongest men! You should know this, Blake!" Adam said. Blake seemed to be affected by his words and took a step back. "Run as you may, but your time is coming." Adam said, taking off, but Blake stopped him with a swing at him, which Adam blocked.

"I. Am not. Running away. Not this time!" Blake exclaimed, pushing Adam back. Their blades clashed numerous times until finally Adam got a strike in on her and send her sprawled on her back, Gambol Shroud out of her reach.

"You brought this upon yourself. Now I will take everything from you." Adam said, turning to see Yang calling out for Blake. "Starting with her."

"Blake, where are you?" Yang called out, turning just in time to see Adam insert his blade into Blake's belly, Blake yelping in pain. "BLAKE!" Yang exclaimed, her whole body flaring as she charged Adam. He stood unfazed as he lifted his blade and swung, Yang's left arm being removed from her body.

"Well, that's two left arms removed today." Adam said as Yang tumbled to the ground. As he approached to finish her off, Blake stood in front, guarding her teammate. "Why must you break my heart so?" Adam said as he decapitated Blake, but only her clone. At the exit, the real Blake was carrying Yang out of the court.

[Meanwhile, in the underground of the school]

"Woah. Why would we have this place here?" Jaune asked as him, Ozpin, Pyrrha, and Undyne ran. He then saw a strange machine with a woman in a capsule, the other one empty.

"Pyrrha, get in the capsule!" Ozpin commanded. Pyrrha nodded and got in the capsule. "Undyne, Jaune, you two stand guard in case someone comes down here." Undyne and Jaune nodded as they took a fighting stance at the empty corridor. Ozpin worked at the console as the two stood guard. "Pyrrha, are you ready?" Ozpin asked. Pyrrha nodded. "I need to hear you say it."

Pyrrha exhaled. "I'm ready."

Ozpin nodded and pressed one last button, the machine activating, the Fall Maiden's soul being transferred to Pyrrha, who started to yell in pain.

"P-Pyrrha!" Jaune exclaimed, turning to see what was going on. This, unfortunately, caused Undyne to turn her attention to the scene too. That timeframe was enough for an intruder to fire an arrow at the Fall Maiden, striking her at her heart. The group turned to see Cinder Fall, her blade bow in hand as the soul was transferred out of Pyrrha and to Cinder, her eyes catching fire similar to Sans as fire orbited her. Undyne tried to fire a harpoon at her, but the energy spear was nothing compared to Cinder's strength. Jaune tried charging at her, but was simply tossed back.

"Undyne! Pyrrha! Get out of here with Jaune! It's too unsafe for you!" Ozpin said.

"But what about you?" Undyne asked.

"Don't worry about me! Go!" Ozpin replied. The three ran out as Ozpin took a fighting stance.

"So… you had her down here the whole time." Cinder said. Ozpin said nothing as he raised his cane, ready for a fight.

A/N

I know, crappy cliffhanger, etc. etc.. But it is late and I am super tired, so there's the chapter. I should say, I won't describe the fight with Cinder and Ozpin since 1) I'll most likely balls it up as I usually do with awesome fight scenes(thank God I'm not a director) and 2) I'm assuming everyone reading has already seen it. If not, you should. Anyway, yadda yadda, sorry about the short chapter, but like I said, super tired. Maybe tomorrow I can write a better chapter. Anyway, enough about me, leave a review of what you thought about the chapter, and…

I should say it now, but I'm going to get a bad time from you guys next chapter. You probably know why. Chao.


	34. Chapter 34: A Heroine's Last Stand

A/N

Okay, so I should have said before that this story was going to mainly follow the canon storylines, so my bad for annoying you guys. Now, this chapter we will be… slightly deviating from the canon storyline, due to mass demand. Never say I ignored you guys. That said, enjoy the finale of RWBY Season 3. Also, there will be some Undertale Genocide run spoilers in this chapter.

Chapter 34: A Heroine's Last Stand

As the three rushed from the tower, they noticed that the Grimm were no longer attacking, but rather seeming to struggle to move.

"What are the Grimm doing?" Jaune asked.

"A good question. That would be me." Gira said.

"Gira? What's going on?" Undyne asked.

"I'm trying to control the Grimm, but that dragon is countering my ability to control them. However, it does seem like they are trying to fight my control rather than people, so I may be able to keep them distracted long enough to get everyone evacuated. Get to the evac point at Beacon's port." Gira said.

"Isn't there a way we can help? Can't we help evacuate citizens here?" Pyrrha asked.

"Sadly, no. Ironwood ordered that every Hunter and Huntress in the area, along with every citizen, should evacuate Beacon and Vale until the Grimm are contained. Also… it seems that there is another evac point at Mt. Ebott. Monsters in the Underground are being evacuated since the Grimm have finally been able to storm the Underground. It seems that dragon was the thing keeping the Grimm away." Gira explained.

"Oh, those poor monsters." Pyrrha said.

"Asgore is looking over the evacuation of every monster in the Underground. Toriel is at Beacon's evac point and helping any injured civilians or Hunters, so you should get there and-" Gira said, being interrupted by a jet of fire in the tower, and the group knew what the source was.

"Cinder. But… she couldn't have…" Undyne said.

"Ozpin…" Pyrrha said.

"We have to go after her." Jaune said.

"Are you insane? Ozpin couldn't stand up to her, what makes you think YOU can?" Gira said.

"If it's the three of us…" Undyne said.

"No. Two of us. Jaune, go to the evac point. Help get citizens to safety." Pyrrha said.

"What? Pyrrha, I can help!" Jaune said.

"Jaune, I'm sorry. Undyne and I have to hold her off long enough to let the people evacuate. You have to get out of here." Pyrrha said.

"Pyrrha's right. It's not that you're not a great fighter. Granted, you are an amazing fighter, but do you remember what happened when you tried to attack her before?" Undyne said. Jaune said nothing. "You'll only be walking into your death. I'm sorry."

"Undyne has a point. Please, Jaune." Pyrrha said.

"You guys better make up your minds, because I don't know how long I can hold the Grimm off." Gira said.

"Alright. Just… promise me you'll come back alive." Jaune said.

"I'll make sure you two lovebirds are reunited after this." Undyne chuckled, patting Jaune's shoulder reassuringly. Jaune chuckled nervously as the two men went to the evac. Pyrrha and Undyne went to the elevator shaft to see a whole in the elevator. They assumed the elevator wouldn't work, so Pyrrha had Undyne get in and used her polarity to make the elevator go up, racing to their battle.

[Meanwhile, Beacon port]

Ruby and Weiss ran to the port to see the evac ships and some Atlas medical tents with Toriel in one. Ruby and Weiss went to Toriel to see Blake and Yang in the medical beds, along with Eric watching over them, trying to repair his severed arm.

"What happened?" Ruby asked.

"Ruby, it was Adam. He… he took a part of us." Eric said, gesturing to his left arm. "Luckily, he only got my robotic half. It's fixable, but it'll take time. As for Yang, I can fix her up a new arm, but that'll take longer, I'm afraid."

"Adam did this. Wait, where's Jaune, Pyrrha and Undyne?" Ruby asked.

"Dunno. They ran off with Ozpin while we were heading for the evac. Didn't see where they went, but it looked like they were heading to Ozpin's office." Eric said.

"And Asgore is at the evac in Mt. Ebott. We're just confirming the evacuation of everyone in the area before we take off." Toriel said.

"Fortunately, we got the majority of the civilians evacuated. We got anyone that can fight either here or looking for civilians." Eric said, tinkering with his left arm.

As they sat, they saw Gira and Jaune coming to the camp. "Hey, there's Jaune! He's with Gira!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Not the first person I would trust Jaune with, but oh well." Eric said, him, Ruby, and Weiss getting up and approaching them.

"Hey, good to see you guys made it." Gira said.

"Jaune, where's Pyrrha and Undyne?" Ruby asked.

"They're at Ozpin's office, taking on Cinder." Jaune said.

"Wait, what?!" Alphys said, coming up to the group.

"They went to try and stop her. We came here to see everyone get out safely." Gira said.

"What about them?" Ruby asked.

"I'll be honest, I don't think this will be a fight they can win, even with all their training. What matters is-" Gira said.

"What MATTERS is we get EVERYONE to safety!" Alphys exclaimed, slightly phasing everyone.

"Alphys, once we get all the citizens evacuated, we'll see to their safety." Gira said.

"As long as they get out alive…" Jaune said.

[Meanwhile, Ozpin's office]

Cinder looked out the window to see the great Grimm Dragon, also staring at her.

"Don't worry, you won't end up like that flower. He was only a means to an end. We all knew he would be stopped by her." Cinder said, the dragon screeching softly. Then, it growled at the elevator shaft as Cinder turned to see the elevator slam to the top. From it, the two warriors stepped out. "So… you finally made it." Cinder said.

"This plan won't work. Someone will always stand up to evil." Undyne said.

"Your warrior spirit shines bright even when you face your death. Amusing." Cinder chuckled.

"Why do this? What do you gain from this?" Pyrrha asked.

"There is no self gain from this. The Grimm were born to kill and slaughter. WHy not let them play their part?" Cinder said.

"You truly are insane. You got a problem with some Hunters and Huntresses, that's one thing, but there are innocent people you're killing, you maniac!" Undyne said.

"Yes. There are." Cinder said.

"Okay, this chick is crazy. Pyrrha, you ready?" Undyne said. They stood in a fighting stance, staring eye to eye for a while until Undyne took the first shoot and fired a harpoon, Cinder reflecting the spear with ease. Pyrrha rushed her and got two strikes in before Cinder sent her back, firing a wave of arrows. Pyrrha dodged the arrows and threw her shield at Cinder, which she deflected and threw to the side, but Pyrrha used her polarity to get it back. Cinder then sent a wave of fire at the two, which they barreled out of the way of just in time. Pyrrha changed her weapon to its rifle form and fired a few shots at Cinder, allowing Undyne to come up on the rear and get three strikes in before Cinder threw her back and sent a wave of fire at her, nicking her arm and causing her to quickly pat out the fire. Fortunately, after the experience she had when chasing Ruby back in the Underground, she enhanced her fire resistance to her armor.

Then, the dragon charged the tower, completely destroying the top bit. Fortunately, the two warriors were still on top. Unfortunately, so was Cinder. As well, Undyne's leg was caught under two cogs. She struggled to move out of it, but they were too heavy for her to move on her own. Then, they were lifted, allowing her to slide out as Pyrrha sent the cogs at Cinder, one she reflected, the other hitting her, knocking her on her back. She quickly recovered and fired a storm of fire arrows at the two, Pyrrha making a blockade with the cogs, all the arrows being blocked.

"Pyrrha, don't wear yourself out. Try to conserve your energy." Undyne said, changing Beast Catcher to harpoon mode and firing a harpoon through a hole in the cogs, Cinder reflecting the spear. She then sent a beam of fire at the blockade. "Dammit, these cogs won't hold for long. Gotta come up with something…" Undyne said.

"I'll be a distraction. You come up on the rear and take her out if you can." Pyrrha said. Undyne nodded and dove to the right, out of sight. Pyrrha then sent the cogs at Cinder and knocked her out of her attack, allowing Pyrrha to change her weapon to sword mode and slash her a few times before she recovered and drew her swords, parrying her every strike. Then, Undyne came from the rear and jabbed at her side, but Cinder saw this coming and blocked the strike. She then swung her swords around and made the two's weapons collide, allowing her to blast them, but Undyne saw this coming and took the blast head on, knocking her on her back, smoldering and smoking. Pyrrha then took control of all the cogs and used them to cage in Cinder. She thought it was over until Cinder caused a blast that destroyed the barrier around her, her anger now flaring as she sent waves upon waves of arrows. Pyrrha used her shield to block most of the arrows, but as she tried to run, one got her in her Achilles tendon, making her fall flat on her chest and break the arrow lodged in her ankle.

Undyne's vision was blurred as she saw Cinder slowly approach Pyrrha and the two exchange comments that Undyne could barely make out. But then, Cinder notched an arrow and Undyne knew Pyrrha was a goner. But then, she got a plan. It was absolutely insane, but it would allow Pyrrha to live. She dove in front of Pyrrha… and took the arrow for her.

"Undyne!" Pyrrha exclaimed.

"I-I'm fine. Go!" Undyne said.

"Undyne, you're hurt bad!" Pyrrha said.

"I'll be alright! Now go to the evac! I'll give you time!" Undyne said, Pyrrha getting to the lift and going down. "Heh. Now I guess it's my time." Undyne said, starting to fade away. But then, she stopped. "But… my body… it's not ready to go yet. I can feel it… everyone's hopes… everyone's dreams… this isn't about humanity anymore, is it? If you live, you'll kill them all, won't you? ...But that WON'T happen. I can feel it. Everyone in the world… our goal… is to destroy you. So, human- No, whatever you are, for the sake of everyone, I, Undyne, will strike you down!" Undyne said, light enveloping her. Once it faded, her semblance was in full form, a light spear shining from her once taken eye. "You're going to have to try a lot harder than THAT!" Undyne the Undying said, her voice echoing as the wind howled. She then turned Cinder's soul green as to show she meant business. "Well, I stand corrected. You DO have a soul." Undyne chuckled, sending a storm of spears at Cinder, thunder crackling in the sky as the battle raged furiously.

[Meanwhile, the evac point]

All the hunters waited for the two warriors to come back on fated breath. Then, Pyrrha came into view, limping her way over to them and Jaune rushed to help. "Pyrrha, are you alright?" Jaune asked.

"Yeah, but I got an arrow in my ankle. Undyne is still up there, fighting Cinder." Pyrrha said.

"I'll take care of the arrow, Pyrrha. As for Undyne…" Toriel said, taking Pyrrha's arm around her neck. "If what I think is happening is happening, she might actually have a chance of beating Cinder."

"You mean… she's using her semblance?" Ruby said, Toriel nodding. "I'm going to go help."

"Ruby! You can't go! You'll be slaughtered!" Weiss said.

"Then come with me. We have to make sure Undyne comes out of this alive!" Ruby said. Weiss sighed as the two ran to the tower.

Undyne struck with ferocity, never leaving an opening for Cinder and never showing mercy. Cinder did the same. Their power was almost identical, Undyne's strikes almost as powerful as Cinder's. Undyne was using everything she had to defeat Cinder, never showing signs of letting up.

'She sure is tough. Though she doesn't have the same experiences as I do.' Undyne thought, striking once more, firing three harpoons afterwards. Cinder then charged an attack and fired a concentrated beam of fire at Undyne, which she tanked. Once the beam dissipated, Undyne was still standing, not phased a bit, surprising Cinder. "That all you got?" Undyne taunted, not letting on she was actually hurting badly. If she was honest, it was taking all her will to not show any weakness. Cinder grunted as she fired wave upon wave of fire, Undyne dodging through each one, this time using all her focus to dodge through them. She now saw that Cinder was holding back on her before. 'No wonder this seemed easy. She wanted me to get confident. Heh, a coward's way to fight.' Undyne thought. She then shifted Beast Catcher's spear length to ten yards, using a wide slash to counter a wave of fire. She knew this tactic wouldn't get her out of those situations frequently, but it was useful for the time. Then, their weapons clashed again, their motions a blur as they swiftly tried to counter the other's strike. Undyne then stopped Cinder in her tracked with her ability and sent a storm of spears at Cinder, who managed to block most of the strikes, but not all of them. Once her soul returned to normal, she instantly lunged at Undyne and swung once, her strike being blocked. But she anticipated this, and swung with her free hand.

[Meanwhile, Ruby and Weiss]

The two teammates ran to the tower as they saw spears flying and fire erupting from the top. They knew they needed to come up with a plan to get to the top before the Grimm came for them. Then, Weiss looked to Ruby and nodded as she made a path of glyphs on the tower side. Ruby saw the plan and ran to the first glyph, using Crescent Rose to speed her up to the top.

As Undyne realized what was happening, it was too late. As Cinder's blade pierced Undyne's armor, she knew the fight was lost.

"D-dammit. Even that wasn't enough? B-but… your time is coming. Even though you beat me, I'm sure the others have managed to evacuate by now. And as long as we live, you'll never destroy our hopes and dreams. And that is why we continue… to… live… on…" Undyne said, her body starting to wither away. As it did, Ruby reached the top just in time to see Undyne fade away, her dust flying away in the wind. Her eyes widened as tears escaped her eyes.

"UNDYYYNE!" Ruby cried, two waves of silver light releasing from her eyes, elapsing around everything and creating a blinding white light around the entire tower top. Before Cinder could comprehend what was happening, everything became white and the last thing she heard was the Grimm Dragon screeching.

[Several days later]

Ruby woke up in her room at home, flinching from the pain in her… everything and grunting from it. That got the attention of Taiyang. "Ruby! You're awake! Oh, thank God. You were out for days." Taiyang said.

"Hey dad. W-where am I?" Ruby asked.

"You're safe, sweetie. Don't worry." Taiyang said. "How do you feel?"

"I dunno… everything hurts." Ruby said.

"I expected as much. You did a number on that thing. Do you remember what happened?" Taiyang asked.

"I- I remember… Undyne! I-is she-" Ruby exclaimed, looking at Taiyang, who gave her a grim look, signifying that Undyne didn't make it out. "I saw Undyne… and Cinder… and she… she…" Ruby said, tears leaking from her eyes.

"Yeah… Alphys was crushed too. When she heard the news, she just… kinda broke down." Taiyang said.

"What about everyone else? Is everyone alright?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, everyone else made it out alive. Even Mettaton made it, thankfully. Eric is here, also. He made himself a new arm and made Yang a temporary arm. Though, he doesn't seem to be eating much and he's not very… social let's say." Taiyang said.

"Wait, he's staying here?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, he doesn't have anywhere else to go. Papyrus and Sans are also here. You'd be surprised at how much more edible Papyrus's cooking has become." Taiyang said.

"I guess after Undyne sacrificed herself, he felt motivated to be better." Ruby said.

"Oh, Toriel also came by and gave some pie for when you woke up." Taiyang said, gesturing to some Cinnamon-Butterscotch pie on the nightstand. Ruby decided to have some of it, since she recalled it giving unbelievable restoration of health. Sure enough, once she took a bite, she instantly felt better.

[Meanwhile, Yang's room]

"Alright, try moving it now." Eric said, adjusting Yang's new arm. Yang tried moving it, the metal forearm flexing as Yang wanted. "Good, basic movements are functional. I'll try adding some armor to it later."

"Thanks Eric. So… why did you try to attack Adam?" Yang asked.

"I… I was blind with rage. I couldn't think straight. If I attacked him with strategy rather than head on, I may have beaten him. But… ugh, if Kieta wasn't gone, we could have beaten him with ease." Eric sighed, resting his head in his hands. Then, they heard some commotion in the kitchen.

"SANS! Stop ruining my magnificent cooking with your horrid puns!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"You were laughing a second ago, though." Sans said.

"That is why you are ruining it!" Papyrus shouted.

"Ugh, I'm surprised their yelling haven't woken Ruby yet." Yang said.

"Heh, no kidding. But…" Eric said, deep in thought. 'Why did Adam hesitate when he had me? Is it... so that's why he hired Gira.' Eric thought.

"Yo, Remnant to Eric, you there?" Yang said.

"Oh, sorry. Just thinking. I'll put the finishing touches on your arm, just… alright, servos look good… alright, just gonna put some bad A stuff on it and you'll be set." Eric said.

"Oh, can you add a hand cannon to it, like that one Marble movie guy, Aluminum Alloy Boy?" Yang said.

"I was thinking the exact same thing. And making one for my own arm. Nice creativity, Yang. By the way, welcome to my world." Eric said, making Yang chuckle. "Well, it's not exactly a challenge to make it, just the resources we have here are limited, so I'll see what I can do." Eric said, some more commotion occurring in the kitchen.

"SANS! Where did you put my special attack?!" Papyrus shouted.

"Don't look at me. Toby's the one playing with it." Sans said.

"TOBY! STOP STEALING MY SPECIAL ATTACK!" Papyrus shouted, the door opening and closing as the two saw Papyrus chase Toby outside, toby having a large bone in his jaws.

"Well, at least some things never change." Eric chuckled. He detached Yang's arm to take it to the garage for enhancements. Yang sighed and stared out the window. As she did, she heard someone enter the room. She was expecting to see Eric, but what she saw instead was her sister, up and well.

"Ruby! You're finally up!" Yang exclaimed, the sisters hugging.

"Yeah, I woke up a few minutes ago. Where was Eric going with that… whatever it was?" Ruby asked.

"Oh, he was just going to make some modifications to my new arm." Yang said, raising up her slightly modified right arm.

"You wanted to have that Aluminum Alloy Boy style, didn't you?" Ruby guessed.

"Yup. Though, we might not have the things we need." Yang replied.

"Uh… changing the subject, what happened to Weiss and Blake?" Ruby asked.

"Weiss was taken back to Atlas by her father. Not many know what happened at Vale, but they all know it was bad. Weiss's father figured it was safer if she stayed in Atlas." Yang said.

"And as for Blake…" Eric said behind Ruby, "well, she decided she could handle herself and took off. Most likely in search for Adam. Idiot will probably get herself killed."

"By the way, how did you get beaten by Adam when you had all those enhancements?" Ruby asked Eric.

"I… I was reckless. I couldn't think straight. All I wanted was to avenge Kieta. Now… Look, I'll finish Yang's arm, then I'm leaving." Eric said.

"What? Why?" Ruby asked.

"I need answers. From Adam himself. He knows about my bloodline, probably more than I do. And… when he had me pinned, I saw he hesitated to strike the fatal blow. I won't get answers here. I hope you'll understand." Eric said.

"Eric, I know you want to avenge Kieta- she was one of my closest friends, too- but-" Ruby said.

"No. I'm sorry, but this is about much more than avenging Kieta. It's about knowing if I'm the last of my bloodline. And how I'll uphold that promise." Eric said, leaving the room.

"Everyone's been a bit… emotional lately. Eric isn't the only one." Yang said.

"Do you think one day everything'll just return to normal?" Ruby asked.

"If it doesn't, we'll be in a true hell for a long time." Yang said.

[Many days later]

By now, Eric had finally left, leaving the gang to team JNPR, what remained of team PAUS, and Ruby, along with Toby, Papyrus carrying Toby's battle suit.

"You guys sure about this? Mistral is a long ways away." Jaune said.

"No matter how long the walk, we'll do it together." Ren said.

"And fear not for food, for I, the great Papyrus, will keep out energy pumping at an alltime high with my majestic cooking! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus said.

"He's gotten way better, so don't worry about the taste as much. His last meal was actually quite edible." Sans said.

"With all us, there's nothing we can't do. We'll reach Mistral before you know it." Ruby said, optimistic about their chances. They left, the autumn air giving the air a more reliable feel for the group, Toby skipping along the group.

[That night]

The team had decided to make camp in a hidden area of the forest, making sure to have one person on sentry duty. When it was Ruby's turn, she scoped out the area to only see a few Creeps, but they seemed to be unaware of them. Aside from them, nothing more. Then, beside her, she saw a familiar golden flower.

"Why did you spare me? I still don't understand. But… things don't seem to be as well as they could be. You managed to get most of the people out… but why did it still turn out like this? ...Well, what if I were to tell you… there's a way to get a better ending out of this. Perhaps you could start by, oh, I don't know… Maybe you could have saved a gentler soul." Flowey said, vanishing into the earth. Ruby thought over that. She didn't know if her determination still worked outside of the Underground. She had never tried to reset before after she released all the monsters. She walked out… and reset back to the beginning of the outbreak, where Kieta was slain.

A/N

Woah, that was a heavy chapter. Took me a couple of days to finally put that together, but here it is! I'm actually surprised no one called me out on not using Ruby's determination to fix some stuff earlier in the story. Anyway, I know, I shouldn't have killed off Kieta like that, so… plot fixer! Thank God I can do this without making things complicated. Anyway, please leave a review of what you thought, and time for those reference callouts! See if any of you can spot any references in this story, and leave a review or PM me your reference callouts! I'll figure out a prize for getting a certain amount of references. With that said, Erecles signing off. Till next chapter, where we go back in time!


	35. Chapter 35: Locked Timelines

A/N: I would like to say some things before the chapter begins. First, thank you all for 100 followers! When I first started this, I never saw this story coming all this way. Honestly, thank you all, from the bottom of my heart, for supporting me through this entire story. If it wasn't for you amazing people, this story would have never come this far. Next, I want to say I will be covering some ground on the functions of Ruby's determination. I realized that if Ruby was to reset, I would probably have to restart from the VERY beginning, and I do not have the patience to rewrite all 34 chapters. So, with that said, enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 35: Locked Timelines

Ruby continually tried to reset, but none of the attempts were fruitful. If anything, it made her dizzier. Once, she was able to see something, but it vanished before she could do a thing. She saw the timelines, one with Beacon still in tact, another with it completely crumbled, Flowey reigning supreme. She thinked God she wasn't in that reality. But she now knew one thing: resetting was impossible up here.

'Why? Why can't I reset? I thought Gira said my determination was unparalleled. Maybe I still can reset, but only in dire situations. Thinking about it…' Ruby thought, thinking back to all the times she reset. First time was with her battle with Undyne, and the next was with Asriel, then last was with Omega Flowey. Each time, she was killed when she reset. 'Maybe my determination only takes effect when I'm near death. But, I'm not willing to try to kill myself just to go back.' Ruby thought. She looked up to see not a single Grimm in sight. She knew this was probably a bad sign, so she lifted up Crescent Rose and scanned the area, but still no Grimm, even with the night vision attachment she had on her scope, thanks to Alphys. In fact, she only saw the rapidly decaying bodies of Grimm in the area. Each one had sword slashings on their necks. Some decapitated. Ruby had some guesses as to who, but one specific one kept in her mind.

'Eric.' Ruby thought, looking up to a tree to see the fully armed cyborg waving to her, his two new blades in hand, which he called Distortion and Vortex, Distortion able to slice through almost any armor, Vortex able to always seek its target. 'He must be helping us in the dark. No wonder we haven't had any Grimm attacks lately.' Ruby thought. She waved back at him before sheathing Crescent Rose and curling up to go to sleep.

[Many days later]

It was now late Autumn, the leaves scattering the ground and the cover from the sun getting thinner and thinner. Fortunately, the sun provided warmth against the cold Autumn winds. Eventually, they reached a ghost town, yet another failed attempt from the kingdoms to expand.

"Man, this place is creepy." Jaune said.

"You think this is a Mistral version of Mt. Glenn?" Papyrus asked.

"Dunno, but it sure isn't welcoming." Ruby replied.

"Keep watch of your backs and be ready for anything." Pyrrha said, everyone unsheathing their weapons. They searched through the ghost town, trying to find a hint of at least recent life, other than Grimm. They heard distant gunshots, and this made them run to the source.

"Maybe they're trying to reclaim the city!" Papyrus said cheerfully.

"Maybe they're evacuating any survivors!" Ren said.

"This may be our chance to get a free ride to Mistral." Ruby said. They slowed to a corner as Ruby peeked over to see some hunters fighting some Grimm. They seemed to be getting overwhelmed, and the group knew what would come out of it. They decided to take action and aid the hunters, Papyrus swinging Meatball at a Beowolf's head, its skull shattering like glass. Ruby sliced a Creep in half then used the yellow blaster mode to propel her faster to a Creep that was about to attack a surprised hunter, hooking it on the tip of her blade and slamming it to the ground. Pyrrha, Ren, and Sans provided ranged cover, Pyrrha using her weapon's rifle mode, Ren using his dual machine pistols, and Sans using Gaster Blaster. Everyone else was side by side with the other Mistral hunters. Ruby noticed that their fighting style was a lot different than that of her friends. To start, none had any ranged weapons. They only wielded swords and shields, and by the looks, none of their weapons had a secondary form. In a few moments, they had cleared the area.

"Hey, thanks for the help. We'd be goners if it weren't for you." The oldest looking one said.

"We're glad to help. Are you from Mistral's academy?" Ruby asked.

"No. We're our own hunter team. We live in a village not too far from here. We reclaimed it after Mistral left it to rot." The younger huntress said.

"Wait, 'left it to rot'? What do you mean by that?" Pyrrha asked.

"Don't you know? Oh, let me guess, you're the bunch from… what was it? Oh yeah, Beacon. Not a lot of good news coming from there. Guess you're here to investigate or whatever? Well, we can take you to our village. Follow us." The oldest said.

"Hey, if you don't mind us asking, what's your names?" Jaune asked.

"I'm Eddie. Then we have Samantha, Nikolai, and Takeo. Our team is Team STEN. What about you guys?" Eddie said.

"I'm Ruby Rose. My team is… scattered." Ruby said.

"I'm Jaune Arc. This is Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora. We're Team JNPR." Jaune said.

"And I'm the Great Papyrus! This is my brother Sans, and my team is Team PAUS! One of our teammates was lost in battle, the other is mourning over her death." Papyrus said, trying to not cry over mentioning Undyne's passing.

"I'm sorry to hear of your friend's death. Follow us, we were just going back to the village when those Grimm attacked." Samantha said.

"Just a question, why do you come out here with no ranged weapons?" Ruby asked.

"It's an old tradition, past down generation by generation. See, we're more of a… samurai type team. Ranged weapons for us is dishonorable." Takeo said.

"Oh. That makes sense I guess." Ruby said. They walked for a while in silence, looking around in search for Grimm, but none seemed to be anywhere. Soon, they finally reached the village. It was slightly run down, but still a sight to see. Old fashioned building were everywhere, and the tallest building being somewhat Japanese, being five stories high. Looking at it, all building were of Japanese culture. Not what Ruby had in mind of Mistral architecture. Still, it was pretty nonetheless. They had mess halls, blacksmiths, and plenty of other useful buildings.

"I'm sure that the elder will want to see you. He's in the tallest building." Eddie said, the group walking through the village. In some areas Ruby could see frequently used medical bays, many hunters laying in medical beds with many wounds.

"Why do you have so many medical bays?" Ruby asked.

"Well, it's harder than you think living outside of the walls of the kingdoms. And in a reclaimed village no less. Those freaking Grimm sure want this place back." Nikolai said. They soon reached the building, and Eddie sheathed his sword, knocking on the door. Soon, a maid opened the door.

"Welcome back, Team STEN. How was the search?" The maid asked.

"We nearly bit it if it wasn't for this group. We brought them here for the elder to see." Eddie said.

"I see. I will tell the elder of this. Please, step inside." The maid said, everyone entering the building. The inside was just as impressive as the outside. Most of the housing items were also of Japanese culture, as well as suits of samurai armor and some sword racks with katanas and broadswords.

"The elder is speaking with someone, but he has allowed you to come in." The maid said.

The group entered the room, seeing a man veiled in a dark cloak signing a paper. "That should do. Anything else?" The man said, his voice slightly metallic.

"This is all. I'll feel much safer with you as my guard." The elder chuckled, shaking the man's hand. Ruby could see the man's hand was fully metal, and she felt she knew who it was.

"Eric?" Ruby asked, the man cloaked turning to reveal the cyborg she knew.

"Ah, Ruby! And everyone else! Sorry I couldn't help out with your predicament, but once I heard of this place, I had to come here. I thought the samurai village would know something about my heritage." Eric said.

"Hey Eric, what's with the Grim Reaper get-up?" Sans asked.

"Oh, this? I just thought it looked cool." Eric said. He then turned to the elder. "Elder, do you know of the Aeild bloodline?" Team STEN seemed to perk up at the mention of the word Aeild.

"The Aeilds? I thought they were wiped out." The elder said.

"Not fully. Many days ago, another was killed. She… was my sister, Kieta Aeild. I… am the last Aeild to exist. Eric Aeild, at your service." Eric said, bowing.

"My dear Eric, your family was blessed with swordsmanship unlike any human. They were supposedly wiped out in the great war, but it seems we were wrong. If you survived, it's possible others may have also survived." The elder said.

"That's impossible. Kieta and I were the last left on Remnant. Adam made sure of that." Eric said.

"Adam? You mean the leader of the White Fang?" The elder asked.

"Yeah, that's him. He put us in the condition that, well, made me part metal." Eric said.

"Eric, your heritage is one of a distant past. We will discuss this later. I see you brought some guests with you." The elder said.

"I will excuse myself, sir." Eric said, taking another bow before exiting.

"Sir! You hired an Aeild to be your guard?!" Eddie exclaimed.

"Calm yourself, Eddie. Who are these people you have brought?" The elder asked.

"I'm Ruby Rose, leader of Team RWBY. This is Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora of team JNPR, and this is Papyrus and Sans of team PAUS." Ruby introduced.

"Ah, I see. If I am correct, you are from Beacon, right? We have heard grave news from there. We are sorry we could not have helped with the situation." The elder said.

"No need to be sorry. The trip here alone took several days, so we don't blame you." Jaune said.

"It is also a shame that Eric's sibling could not have been saved. So far as we know, he is the last upholder of his bloodline." The elder said.

"Sir, what should we do with these people?" Samantha asked.

"We treat them as guests. I assume you must be tired and hungry after your trip. I will allow you a place to stay, as well as dinner for tonight. Feel free to get used to the place." The elder said. They all bowed in respect and exited. Papyrus and Sans were bunked together, Ruby and Eric were in the same room, then it was Jaune and Pyrrha, then Ren and Nora.

"Eric? Why did you follow us?" Ruby asked.

"I didn't want to lose any more loved ones. Losing Kieta was when I thought I couldn't lose anything more. But… when Blake saved me, I realized that Kieta wasn't the only thing I had to lose. So, in a way, I'm saying you guys helped me have more reason to live." Eric said, checking his blades.

"Look… I tried to go back to save her." Ruby said.

"Wait, you tried to reset? Did it work?" Eric asked.

"No. For some reason, I can't reset unless, by what I theorize, I'm in a critical state, such as near death." Ruby explained.

"What do you mean by that?" Eric asked.

"If I think back, the three times I reset was with Undyne, Asriel, and Omega Flowey, and each time I would have been killed under normal circumstances." Ruby said.

"So what you're saying is your determination only takes effect when you're about to die. Well, at least you won't die easily." Eric said.

"I'm sorry I couldn't go back and save Kieta." Ruby said.

"It's fine. You had no power over that. Honestly, I believe everything happens for a reason. Kietas death gave me the encouragement to seek the truth. Though it pains me to say it, her death is for the best, as long as this war Gira spoke of comes to an end as a result. We just need to make sure Adam doesn't win it." Eric said, placing his dark robe on his bedside. Ruby took the time to observe the room, seeing it wasn't much different from the dorms at Beacon.

Then, another maid entered the room. "Master Eric and Mistress Ruby, the Elder seek your presence."

"Thank you for informing us. We'll be on our way." Eric said, letting the maid guide them to the dining hall. It was also of Japanese culture, meaning there was no chairs, but instead pillows for them to sit on.

"I'm glad to have you all here. First, allow me to properly introduce myself. My name is Masuta Senshi. I won't have you repeat your names, since you have already told me. Now then, your coming here leads me to believe you are in search of a way into Mistral. I do, in fact, know of a way in, but one favor must be done for another." Elder Masuta said.

"You wish of us to return your favor with a favor of our own?" Ren asked.

"Correct, Ren. Recently, as you may recall, Grimm are all around our home. Recently, though, some new and rather tough Grimm have suddenly appeared. We do not know of it's cause, but we of Forunichi would like you to investigate." Masuta said.

"If I may, Masuta, I believe I know of it's cause. I think we all know of it." Eric said. Then, it clicked in Ruby's head.

"Eric is right. The cause may be of the awakening of that Grimm dragon in Mt. Ebott." Ruby said.

"Mt. Ebott? You mean…" Masuta said, closing his eyes and scratching his chin. "Oh dear. The situation is worse than we thought." This statement worried the group.

"I-Is there something wrong, Masuta, sir?" Jaune asked nervously.

"I'm not going to sugar coat this. The entire village may be on the verge to destruction, if what you said is true. Long ago, there were four ancient beasts, two Grimm, two animals. They were counterparts of each other, the Grimm the shadow of the original. One was a dragon, the other was an ancient beast, known as a Tyrannosaurus. It's counterpart was named the Tyrant, and the dragon's counterpart was named Kemuri. The originals were named Jawk and Smaug. They fought with power unlike any man or Grimm. Tales say their battles formed the landmass that is the mainland we stand on today. Once their powers were drained, they rested on the four edges of the continent, forming the main mountains at each kingdom. Mt. Ebott, as you know, is the resting place of Kemuri. If you wish to find its counterpart, it rests in Vacuo, the opposite side of Remnant." Masuta explained.

"Sounds like we have a long ways to go still. We'll investigate these Grimm, Elder Masuta." Eric said.

"I wish you luck, brave ones." Masuta said. "But for now, eat and regain your strength. If you do not rest, you will be easy prey." Everyone nodded and ate, returning to their rooms after the meal.

"Well, at least now we have a lead on where Adam will strike next. We need to find the Tyrant's resting place and stop Adam from awakening it." Jaune said.

"But first, we have to find out how and where these new Grimm are coming from. After that, we get into Mistral." Papyrus added.

"Sounds like we got a plan. Let's rest up for tonight and set out in the morning." Ruby said. They all returned to their rooms and got to bed. But for Eric and Ruby, they couldn't sleep.

"Hey, you still up Ruby?" Eric asked.

"Yup." Ruby replied.

"You thinking about Undyne?" Eric asked.

"Yeah. even after all this time, I still can't get over it. I've never seen anybody die before. Grimm, yeah, but not a living person." Ruby said.

"Hey, I'd say you got it easy compared to me. I watched my own sister die in front of me. I'm all I got left, aside from you guys. All I have left of Kieta is her cyborg half. Heh, guess this is her will and testament." Eric said.

"But still, I can't get her out of my head. I could have saved her. Not just her, but Kieta as well." Ruby said.

"Hey, stop being so hard on yourself. You stopped Flowey from taking Beacon. Well, somewhat." Eric said.

"If only my determination worked when I want it to…" Ruby said.

"Well, from what I gather, it's either you accept the way the timeline is or you reset to the very beginning and do EVERYTHING over again." Eric said.

"Well, it is a tough decision." Ruby sighed.

"Knowing what you've been through, I doubt you would risk it all to go all the way back. I don't blame you if you don't. The road to redoing the past is a long one. You'd have to deal with me again, Gira, Torchwick, Adam… well, the list really goes on." Eric said.

"But… what about Kieta and Undyne?" Ruby asked.

"I know you want to save them, but timelines are a mix of good and bad. If you go back and save them, there's a chance someone else will end up taking their place and die. Could be you, could be me. It could end up killing everyone as a result. Or it could end up being the same result everytime. Timelines are hard to predict. If you ask, I talked to Sans a while back about them to see if I could do something about my village. Well, you probably know how that went." Eric chuckled.

"I guess there isn't much in the matter. I'll have to accept the way things are." Ruby sighed, flopping down on her bed.

"Look, grieving over it will only slow you down. This is coming from a guy who experienced this for himself. Being half robot definitely didn't help. Look, the point is, it could be worse. Yang could be dead, but she only lost an arm. That's reason enough to be happy. This, too, I know from experience." Eric said, yawning. "Well, I'm going to sleep. You should too soon. We got a big day tomorrow." Eric then went to sleep, leaving Ruby in her thoughts.

'He is right that it could be worse, but still… I guess Pyrrha could be worse off. It was Undyne who saved her. Right, no need to be down because Undyne died saving a soul. She died for a cause. It's us who have to honor that cause and see it through to the end.' Ruby though as she curled up and went to sleep.

[The next morning]

"GOOOOOD MORNING, FELLOW HUMANS!" Papyrus shouted , abruptly waking up everyone.

"Papyrus, you think you could maybe tone it down?" Eric asked, putting on his regular attire.

"We got a big mission ahead! No time for sleeping in!" Papyrus said, slinging Meatball over his shoulder.

"In short, we need to get this done, ASAP." Sans said.

"Right right, we need to kill all the Grimm trying to trample this place, save the day, yadda yadda." Eric sighed, strapping on his blades.

"Master Eric, Elder Masuta seeks your presence." A maid said.

"I'll be right there." Eric said. "See you guys in a few." He said, following the maid.

"Wonder what he needs of him." Sans said.

[10 minutes later, Forunichi armory]

Eric finally arrived in the armory, where Masuta was waiting for him. "Ah, there you are. Thank you, Nikko." Masuta said, Nikko bowing before leaving.

"So what did you call me for?" Eric asked.

"I have a favor to ask. The samurai tradition is thought to be a dying one. We of Forunichi digress. That is why I will give you this." Masuta said, bestowing a sheathed shortsword. It had a copper and gold hilt and sheath, along with a silver white iron blade. The hilt expanded as a guard to add protection to the wielder's hand, and it looked to be specially crafted for speed and durability, though Eric didn't know why the material choice was copper and gold. "This sword was said to have been wielded by an Aeild, one of your ancestors. In fact, he was said to have fought in the war and be a survivor. We salvaged it many years ago and kept it here for another Aeild to have. Eric, as Elder of Forunichi, I bestow upon you the Aster Sword. Take it, and honor your family." Masuta said, giving Eric the blade. Eric was impressed at the weight of the weapon. Almost as light as a feather.

"Thank you, Elder Masuta." Eric said, with a bow. He took off Distortion and replaced it with the Aster Sword. Somehow, he felt stronger with the blade on his back. He guessed it was in his head.

"Hey Eric, nice sword. Elder give it to ya?" Sans said.

"Yeah, seems to have a connection to my heritage. Nevermind that, let's move out." Eric said, the group rushing out to the forest.

[Meanwhile, in the main building]

"Elder Masuta, can you please tell us why you chose them to take care of the Grimm? We could very well take them out." Eddie said.

"They are in great numbers and have great power. I could sense it the moment I saw them. Especially that Ruby one." Masuta said.

"With all due respect, what makes her so special?" Samantha asked.

"You have not yet seen her closely enough. Have you looked into her eyes? She bears the silver eyes of legend. Some of the greatest warriors of past have borne silver eyes. They say a single look from one of these warriors could be enough to kill a Grimm. Or even… pause one of the ancient Grimm." Masuta said.

"You mean she's the one that paused Kemuri?" Nikolai said.

"Yes, if I'm correct. As well, she is very famous for freeing the monster race." Masuta said.

"Man, she IS something." Samantha said.

"As well, if Eric finds it…" Masuta said, scratching the hairs on his chin.

"Finds what, Elder?" Eddie asked.

"It's nothing. You are dismissed." Masuta said.

"Yes, sir." Team STEN said in unison.

[Two hours later]

"Uuuuugh, are we THERE yet?" Nora complained.

"If my calculations are correct, we should be reaching the pinnacle of the Grimm nests soon. Wait… THERE!" Eric said, pointing to an old temple. It seemed to be infested with vines and moss, many broken pillars scattering the place. They looked around to see no signs of Grimm activity. Ruby had a sense of Deja Vu.

"This… this is what it felt like going to Mt. Ebott." Ruby said.

"Then that means we're close. Watch your six, they could pop out of anywhere." Eric said, everyone unsheathing their weapons. Eric threw out Vortex to see if it would catch a Grimm. Without a doubt, a Beowolf cry sounded in the distance, along with Vortex returning with Beowolf entrails. "Okay, that's a souvenir I'm NOT taking." Eric said, wiping it off the blade.

"If it got one, then…" Pyrrha said, looking behind them to see dozens of blood red glowing eyes staring at them. "BEHIND!"

"Son of a-" Papyrus said, a Creep pouncing him. "GAH! GET HIM OFF ME!" Papyrus screamed, flailing to try and get out of it's grasp. Sans swung Funny Bone and sliced the Creep in half, splattering Papyrus in it's blood. "Thanks, bro!"

"Don't mention it, bro." Sans said.

"Here they come!" Jaune said, slashing a Beowolf at the waste, slicing it in half like a knife through butter. Ruby shot Crescent Rose at a Beowolf flanking them, slicing another in half vertically.

"We'll be overrun soon if more arrive! Let's take shelter in the temple!" Eric said. No one argued and they all ran to the temple. Eric slashed Aster Sword at a Creep and it fell before the blade was even halfway through it's body. Now that he looked closely, the blade was giving off a slight light. "What in the-" Eric wondered, being cut off by a Beowolf slashing at him, sending him on his back. He slashed upward, cutting the Beowolf's head clean off, running to the temple entrance and blasting the room with his hand cannon, sealing the entrance, but fortunately not their air supply. It wasn't enough to suffocate them all, but enough to keep the Grimm out.

"Well, good news is we're safe of the Grimm. Bad news is, we're in the dark, literally." Ruby said.

"Well, here's a solution." Eric said, grabbing a torch from the wall and lighting it on fire with a built in lighter in his hand.

"Well, one problem is solved." Ren said.

"I'll lead the way." Eric said. They past countless tombs filled to the brim with treasures the group has never seen, varying from gold bars to beautiful jewels to even ancient weapons.

"Man, I wish we could loot some of this stuff. We'd be rich beyond our wildest dreams!" Nora sighed.

"Our mission is to find the source of the new Grimm and put a stop to it if possible. Let's not let the treasures of the dead distract us." Ren said.

"Ren's right. We need to be on our highest alert. Never know what kind of traps this place has." Ruby said. This made the group watch excessively at their steps.

"Eric, can't you, like, scan the place for traps?" Jaune asked.

"Under normal circumstances, yes, but this temple is interfering with my scanners. Sorry, but we're in the dark on traps." Eric said, raising the torch so everyone can see their steps better. Soon, they found themselves no longer surrounded by tombs, but rather in a large room. Statues of ancients lined the walls, along with long burnt out torches and braziers. At the end was a giant fissure, the size of two Death Stalkers. From it, a Grimm came from. It had drills for hands and bone plating almost completely covering it, making it almost completely in vulnerable.

"It's the Grimm! What the heck kind of Grimm is it, though?!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"It's a Hydrill! Don't go for the arms, it regrows them!" Pyrrha said, firing a round at it's head, but to no avail. It then bashed it's drill arms into the ground and burrowed downward.

"At least we found the source, but how the heck do we seal them?" Ruby said.

"We can't block the fissure, they'd break through it no problem. We need to go deeper." Eric said.

"Eric's right. If we're to stop them, we need to see how they're coming out." Pyrrha said. As she said that, the Hydrill broke through the ground and sent stones flying at them, acting almost as bullets. Eric tried to deflect the stones, but his targeting systems were still down, making it difficult. Luckily, his aura was able to absorb the blows.

The Hydrill saw this and charged, Eric striking down, but the armor was too thick. The Hydrill swung its drill arm and sent him flying, knocking down a statue. Papyrus used this chance to bash Meatball into it's skull, knocking it unconscious in an instant. "I got him!" Papyrus cheered.

"It'll awaken soon, let's move before it does." Jaune said. Ruby and Pyrrha helped Eric up before they went into the fissure. It was almost pitch black, some of them often almost tripped over their own feet.

"I can't see two feet. If only we still had that torch." Ren said.

"Maybe…" Eric said, lifting his hand for a ball of energy to give them some lighting.

"Well, there's a solution. Lead on." Jaune said. Eric took the lead and made sure no other Grimm would pop out. Soon, they appeared in a bright cavern. It was domed out and there was a beam of sunlight coming from the center of the roof, shining down on another old temple, this one only the size of a tool shed.

"This… seems too safe." Ruby said.

"Indeed. There's bound to be a trap of some sort. Don't let your guard down for a second." Pyrrha said. They cautiously approached the temple to see inside a shadow surrounding a throne. On the throne was a man made completely of darkness, his eyes red like blood. The shadows seemed to burrow into the ground, bringing forth more Hydrills.

"Well, we found the source. How do we stop it?" Jaune asked.

"How the crap do we kill a shadow man?!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"We'll have to try! If we don't, Forunichi will fall, and we'll never get to Mistral. We have to stop him, here and now!" Eric said, firing a ball of energy at the Shadow King, the ball going straight through him. "Dammit! He IS made of pure shadows!"

"Language! We have to keep trying to hit him!" Ruby said. She then fired the low level blast from Crescent Rose, that too having no effect. "Well crap."

"Let's try close range!" Jaune said, charging the Shadow King and slashing, this time having some sort of effect. The Shadow King fled from the throne and sent a wave of shadow at them, the darkness engulfing them. It felt like thorns from a rosebush, scraping all of their flesh and cutting them deeply. Fortunately, none of the injuries were fatal, and they were able to stand strong.

"Go for close range combat! Even if you have to charge through the waves of darkness!" Ruby said.

"So, wait, we're not going to go over the fact that Ruby just said 'language'?" Eric asked.

"Focus on the mission, Eric!" Papyrus shouted. He flicked a switch on Meatball and the ball extended on a chain, and he swung it, the ball extending from 3 feet to a maximum of 12 feet, hitting the Shadow King dead on. It screeched with a pitch like nails on a chalkboard, making everyone's hair stand up straight.

"GAH! Shut that thing UUUUUP!" Nora yelled, swinging her hammer down on the Shadow King, which slammed into the wall, vanishing into the ground. The Hydrills then attacked, sending little stones flying at the group, making them hide behind boulders.

"Those Hydrills… something is off." Eric mused, trying to access his scanners again.

"Time to GET THE GROUND SHAKIN'!" Papyrus shouted, bashing the ground with Meatball to draw out the Shadow King. Fortunately, his plan worked, and the Shadow King was drawn out. Eric didn't waste a second and charged him with the Aster Sword, deflecting a stream of shadow.

"This sword… it can reflect darkness?!" Eric exclaimed, but he didn't let this surprise stop him. He slashed the Shadow King, the blade going clean through his body, but not being ineffective. It seemed to be injured, so Eric continued to slash, each hit weakening the Shadow King further and further. Soon, the Shadow King fully withdrew, the Hydrills' eyes focusing and soon no longer having the bloodlust they used to have. They saw the group and panicked, burrowing in the ground and disappearing.

"They just… fled." Jaune said.

"Now it all makes sense." Eric said.

"What are you referring to, Eric?" Pyrrha asked.

"I've read that Hydrills are usually neutral, not known for violence. In fact, some are known to have worked for miners to make mineshafts to lessen the length of digs. Actually, they are one of the primary assets of the Schnee dust company. How else do you think they profited so fast?" Eric said.

"When you put it that way…" Ren said.

"Well, we finished our mission. Let's report back to Masuta." Ruby said. They returned to the fissure and exited the temple.

[Two more hours later, Forunichi Village]

As they went through the village, they saw an increase of monsters. They even saw a cardboard box with a Temmie with the words 'tEM nEeds mUnS foRE tEM's fAmiLI'. The group felt bad for the Temmie and gave him some of their spare change. "hOI! tHANK fore some mUns!" Temmie said.

"Glad to help. Best of luck to you!" Ruby said. They got to the Senshi Tower and knocked on the door.

"Ah, you return! I trust it went well?" Masuta said.

"We found the source of the Grimm spawning and stopped it. It seems to have been a Shadow King that controlled a group of Grimm known as Hydrills." Eric said.

"Hydrills? Those neutral Grimm?" Masuta asked.

"The Shadow King took over their minds and forced them to attack the village, along with us. I also have reason to believe he was also controlling the nearby Grimm." Eric responded.

"Well, you have kept up your part of the deal. Now, allow us of Forunichi Village to return the favor. We will give you all access to Mistral City." Masuta said.

A/N

HELLO, HUMAN FOLLOWERS! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WISH TO THANK YOU FOR 35 CHAPTERS OF ROSE OF THE UNDERGROUND!

Thank you, Papyrus. Now then, as I said at the start, thank you for 35 chapters and over 100 followers of this fanfic. I also would like to apologize for not updating for so long. I got caught up with helping my sister move into college, getting ready for school to start up, and also watching too much Code Geass lately. Anyway, here is the easter egg hunt list!

What game is the Aster Sword based off of?

What game is the members of team STEN based off of?

What movie is Eric and Ruby quoting in the fight scene with the Shadow King?

What is the dragon's name a reference to?

Them's the easter eggs! There are more, but it wouldn't be any fun giving you guys ALL the easter eggs. Anyway, first to submit the answers to the easter eggs will get… something. Maybe an idea of their own being inserted into the story, maybe a new OC, who knows? Anyway, I will be returning the previous OCs submitted and inserted into the story next chapter, so fear not. Till next chapter!


	36. Chapter 36: Rescue and Arrival

Chapter 36: Rescue and Arrival

"Teams RWBY, JNPR, and PAUS, we of Forunichi are sincerely grateful for your daring sacrifice, and are pleased to see you all return in one piece. For your assistance, we will happily grant your path to Mistral City. But be warned: this will not be easy. There is still much between you and Mistral City. To get there, you will need to go through another town. From our reports, it too has fallen to the Grimm. Mayhaps you can visit it and clear the area of those Grimm. I'm sure what remains of the town will gladly help you. Maybe some rest, advice, or maybe even another ally. In any case, we will see you all of tomorrow morning. Get some rest and have a bite to eat." Masuta Senshi said. The group nodded and did a bow, going to their rooms.

"Hey Eric, how ddid you block the Shadow King's attacks?" Papyrus asked.

"I dunno. Maybe it's because of this sword." Eric said, holding up the Aster Sword. It's radiance slightly brightened the hall.

"Wow. That is awesome." Ruby said, almost slack jawed at the beautiful blade.

"We should get rest ASAP. Tomorrow will be a big day, as per usual." Eric said, sheathing his sword. The next morning, they ate and packed their stuff, ready for another day of being hunters and huntresses.

"Alright, here's the plan: judging from this map, the quickest way to the fallen town is through the woods. Eric and I will go straight through, taking out any enemies in sight. Once we take out the main force in the village, Eric will fire a shot from his hand cannon to signal when group two will come in. Group two will consist of Jaune, Pyrrha, and Nora. As well, when Eric fires, Group three, which will consist of Papyrus, Sans, and Ren, will stay in the borders, making sure no backup comes. Once we clear the village of enemies, we rescue any survivors of the attack. Any questions?" Ruby said.

"Uh, where do we hold out until Eric gives the signal?" Jaune asked.

"Good question. You'll hide within the trees, a safe distance away from the village. Once he gives the signal, you rush to the village, killing any Grimm in sight." Ruby responded.

"Okay, I think I got it." Jaune said.

"Everyone else?" Ruby asked, everyone nodding. "Good. Let's get to it, then!"

The group then headed out, Masuta showing them the path.

"Stick to this path until you reach the village. There, Mistral City will be in sight. I wish you the best of luck." Masuta said, walking back to the village.

"Then let's go!" Ruby said, the group rushing down the path. Halfway, the group split up, Jaune, Pyrrha, and Nora going left, Papyrus, Sans, and Ren going right. Ruby and Eric stayed on the path, soon slowing to a walk. Eric was now wearing a black jacket, orange shirt, navy blue jeans with orange trims, and his black cloak.

"Ruby… you think there's a way to save Kieta? I know, you can't reset back to then, but even without Determination… is there still a way to save her?" Eric asked.

"Why, the answer's in your head, silly." A voice said. Eric looked around, but only Ruby was to be seen.

"Uh, was that you?" Eric asked.

"Was what me?" Ruby asked.

This confused Eric. It was definitely a female voice, so it couldn't have been Gira, so who was it?

"Eric, look!" Ruby said, pointing to a burning village. In the distance, they could see Beowolves raiding the houses, and behind them Nevermores came swooping down. Ruby formed an idea and unfolded Crescent Rose, grabbing Eric. "Hold on!"

"Wait, what are you-" Eric was about to ask, but was quickly answered by Ruby latching onto a Nevermore, the two flying off with it. "WOAH!"

"Yeah, this is way better than any bus." Ruby chuckled. "Wait… NOW!" Ruby exclaimed, slicing the Nevermore's wing off. They used the body as a landing softener, rolling with the impact. They then looked up to see a few Beowolves, staring at them. They seemed to be slightly different than the other Beowolves, but that didn't make it any more difficult killing them, Ruby slicing one's head off. Eric drew Vortex and threw it, beheading three Beowolves before returning to him like a boomerang.

"This should be easy if it's just these guys." Eric said, slicing a Beowolf in half with Aster Sword. Just then, a giant Grimm ape crashed in front of them, pounding it's chest.

"Oh, COME ON!" Ruby yelled, firing a round at it, only for it to bounce off. "Weapon fire ineffective!"

"Should we call group two in?" Eric asked.

"No, that'll ruin the plan if we call them in early. We need to kill that ape!" Ruby said.

"She's smart. If only you had such bright ideas, heh heh." The voice said.

"W-where…" Eric muttered, looking around, only for him to be slammed by the ape.

"Hey, pay attention to the battle! I don't want to be killed this early with you." The voice said.

"Wait… that voice… K-" Eric said, only for his sentence to be cut off by the ape smashing him. "GAH!"

"Eric!" Ruby exclaimed, slicing the back of the ape, it roaring and slamming her back.

"Ruby's in danger! Use it!" The voice said.

"Use what?!" Eric asked.

"My ability! Stop it from killing her! In fact, pause it completely!" The voice said.

'Her ability? Is it really you… Kieta?' Eric thought. He had little time to think, so he pushed it out of his mind and lifted his right hand, but nothing happened. "Why isn't it working?!"

"I didn't use my hand, like you did. I used my eye, that's my trick." Kieta said.

Eric then tried focussing his right eye, and the ape stopped. "It worked! Ruby, strike now!" Eric yelled. Ruby nodded and swung wildly at the ape, then Eric unpausing it, falling to his knees. "Gah. That took more effort than I thought." Eric gasped.

The ape staggered back, but it wasn't done yet. It grabbed Ruby and leaped into the sky, slamming down into the church. The two struggled to fight, the ape trying to bash Ruby into the peus, Ruby trying to get free of the ape's grasp. Soon, Ruby was able to fight out of the death grip and launch it out the church door. She then leaped high into the air and set Crescent Rose to the glaive mode, another thanks to Alphys. She plummeted down and impaled the ape, but it still lived, but only before Ruby sent a point blank round into it's skull. She took out Crescent Rose from the body and helped Eric up.

"Now, give the signal." Ruby said. Eric nodded and fired his hand cannon into the air. That got the attention of their allies, but unfortunately got the attention of all the Grimm in the area. Soon, Jaune, Pyrrha, and Nora were united with them and they fought out with all they had, decapitating and slashing and bashing and shooting all they could, all while Papyrus, Sans, and Ren fought the forces that would have flanked them. Within minutes, they reclaimed the village. They went from door to door, saving any survivors they could.

"There's another in that building, Ruby!" Asriel said in Ruby's mind. Ruby used her semblance to rush in and out of the house mentioned by Asriel to save a teenager, about the same age as Ruby. Inside the house was two fallen adults, Ruby assumed they were the teen's parents. Another thing that caught Ruby's eye was the weapon the teen held. It was an antique sword, still good, but not as sharp as it could be.

'Is she… a huntress?' Ruby thought.

[A few minutes later]

The group had secured the area and recovered what remained of the village. Most were somewhat unharmed, but some had sustained serious injuries. After a while, everything was a bit better, the ones who needed it were under medical care, thanks to Pyrrha and Eric, who both took some medical aid classes back at Beacon.

"Well, thank God some of us are medics." Eric chuckled, bandaging the teen that Ruby saved.

"What was that ape thing that you and Ruby fought anyway? Never seen a Grimm like that before." Pyrrha asked.

"To be honest, even I don't know. It must be a new kind of Grimm. It was tough, about the strength of two Ursi and it was almost as durable as a Hydrill. This must mean… if Adam's plan is to the next phase, then… no, he couldn't have awakened it yet!" Eric said.

"Eric?" Pyrrha asked.

"I'm fine. Let's work on evacuating everyone and getting them safely to Mistral City." Eric said.

"Mistral… they… sent us... to… die." The teen said faintly. Both Eric and Pyrrha perked up and exchanged questioning glances.

"There's no way they would. They must not have know this would turn out like this." Pyrrha said.

"But… why wouldn't they clear the area that is right next to the kingdom? The fires would provide smoke, meaning it served as a sort of flare. If they didn't even respond to it…" Eric said.

"There must be some sort of story behind it! They couldn't just ignore these people!" Pyrrha said.

"No… they… knew this… would… happen." The teen said, now getting up.

"Look, this has happened many many times over the course of human history, maybe it's-" Eric said, a horrid thought coming to his mind. "Maybe it's that they're being controlled. By someone other than Ironwood."

"Who? Who would be able to usurp his power?" Pyrrha asked.

"I have some thoughts, none of them good." Eric said, shuddering at the thought of Cinder having complete control of the Mistral forces.

"Even if someone bad has control of Mistral, we still need to evacuate these people somewhere." Pyrrha said.

"But where? Forunichi is too far away, and if we bring them back to Mistral, we might be shot on the spot." Eric said.

"But we can't just leave them here to die! If we did, I could never be able to call myself a huntress." Pyrrha said.

"I understand that. We have two choices ahead of us: we head all the way back to Forunichi and leave them there, or we take our chances and go to Mistral. Either way, we take chances at some people dying. Beowolves could strike at any time, so it's unwise to try to hold out here." Eric said.

"I understand. Should we tell this to the others?" Pyrrha asked.

"Yes. We need their opinion on the situation." Eric said. They exited the building and went to where everyone else was. "Everyone! We need your attention!" Eric shouted, getting everyone's attention. "From the information we've gathered, we have only two options! First, we could take all survivors to Forunichi, but risk the chance of Grimm attacks. Second, we take them back to Mistral, but from what I've gathered, there's a chance the forces of Mistral is overtaken by a select few people. This act will risk us in getting shot. Another thing, it is unwise to stay here. Grimm are bound to strike again, so I suggest we move out on first light."

"Eric, if I may. I suggest we go to Mistral, regardless of what may happen to everyone." Ruby said.

"All in favor?" Eric asked, over half the people raising their hands. "Very well then. We move at first light. We'll set up divisions around the town to ensure everyone's safety. All those who are not on night guard, get some sleep. That is all." Eric said. Everyone either went to night guard positions or went to sleep. Eric took night guard, but he saw more than Grimm. "Come on out, little wolf. I know you're there." Eric called out.

"Heh, you really are a sharp eye." Vasha said, coming out from a bush. Kerasi was also with her, along with Gira. "Perhaps even a challenge to me."

"So then, are you here to help us?" Eric asked.

"Yes. Masuta told us of the situation. I assume we are coming to Mistral to stop the Tyrant from awakening." Kerasi said.

"As well, there is something else I myself want to aid you in, Eric Aeild." Gira said.

"Gira… what's your game? First you tried to kill Kieta and I, then all of a sudden you want to help us?" Eric said.

"If I wanted you both dead, I would have done it already. But instead of trying to kill you two, I instead want to revive one of you." Gira said.

"What are you-" Eric said.

"Oh my gosh, he wants to put my brain into a machine and the data of me in your head. It would be an exact copy of me." Kieta said.

"But… a copy isn't good enough. Nothing can replace her, not even an AI programmed to be an exact replica of her." Eric said.

"Are you seriously that selfish? We're using her own brain, a thing invaluable! It'll be her own conscious, her personality, everything! She was half robot anyway, why not go all the way?" Gira said, Eric scowling.

"Don't think you can scare me. Now that I have this!" Eric yelled, pointing Aster Sword at Gira.

"T-That's..!" Gira stammered, backing from the blade.

"You know of this sword. And you know full well that this could kill you within a heartbeat. And with the K13T4 systems, I could make it seem like a mere second. Face it, you have no chance of beating me in combat anymore." Eric said. "Hell, I could order you to die."

"Fine, I get it. But I still want to help you revive Kieta." Gira said.

"Then how do you expect to get her brain, now that it's miles away?" Eric asked.

"I don't need to go back." Gira said, holding out a secure casing with a half metal brain.

"You… you knew you would find me?" Eric said.

"I knew I HAD to. She is of Aeild blood, and I also have some of her blood samples. If I input it correctly, her swordsmanship and identity will remain unchanged." Gira said.

"But… why would you?" Eric asked.

"Because the world needs you both. Not only because of your ancient blood, but because the Tyrant won't be stopped without you both. Speaking of which, Masuta wanted me to give everyone a piece of advice." Gira said.

"Hold it until morning. If it's for everyone, we need them all to hear it." Eric said.

"Very well. You should get some rest. We'll take your position until morning." Gira said.

"Yeah, you should rest up. Recharge and stuff." Kerasi said.

"If you say so. Alright." Eric said, leaving his shift for the three.

[Meanwhile…]

"Hey, Sans. You still awake?" Papyrus asked.

"Yeah, bro. What's up?" Sans replied.

"You think one day, everything will return to normal?" Papyrus asked.

"No idea, bro." Sans replied.

"I just wish we could go back to the good old days, where the only thing we had to worry about was getting out of the Underground, you know? I mean, it's kinda fun being a hunter, but that still doesn't change the fact that… oh, I wish Undyne was still here." Papyrus sighed.

"Yeah, I know what you mean, bro. I wish she was still alive too. But look on the bright side, she died saving Pyrrha." Sans said, trying to lift Papyrus's spirits.

"I know, but still… Once this whole war thing is over, you think we can just… slow down and maybe play a nice game of Magic and Monsters?" Papyrus asked.

"Once this is all over, we may be able to. Maybe even go by Grillby's." Sans said.

"Nyeh heh. Remember when we watched Ruby fight Mettaton at Grillby's?" Papyrus asked.

"And how you freaked out when she nearly bit it? Yeah, I remember it like it was tomorrow. Wait…" Sans said.

"Nyeh heh heh. Let's make sure these humans live a good life." Papyrus said, the two skeletons drifting off to sleep.

[Five hours later]

"Alright, everyone, it's morning. Take anything you need and get ready to set out! We need to act before the Grimm have a chance to!" Gira said, all the people taking any of the belongings they could and setting out.

"Gira, what was it you said you needed to tell us?" Eric asked.

"Masuta forgot an important detail to the legend of the four mountains. Each ancient being has servants. Kemuri has the Gryphons as his servants, and the Tyrant, also known as Indominus, has his children, a legion of Tyrants. As well, Smaug will not simply help us defeat Kemuri. He is… hard to predict. He will most likely try to kill us for having awakened him, so we'll need to tame him, so to speak." Gira said.

"Also, we'll have to be cautious getting into Mistral City. We looked ahead and it's heavily guarded, most likely to keep Adam and the White Fang out. We'll need to keep our guard up at all times and make sure not to, well… get shot." Vasha said.

"Good advice. Let's get moving, the sooner we get out of here, the better." Ruby said. They all walked through the forest, killing any Grimm in sight. Soon, they reached the border to Mistral City.

"HALT! Identify yourselves, or we WILL open fire!" A guard said on top.

"I am prototype 3R1C, and I came to rescue these villagers, along with a group of hunters!" Eric said.

"You're the 3R1C unit…" The guard said, scratching his chin. "Right. Stay put." He then went out of view, some talking heard on the other side. "Right then. OPEN THE GATE!" As they heard this, the gateway opened, leading down the path to Mistral City.

"Well, this is a pleasant surprise." Jaune said.

"All of you may do as you please, but you, 3R1C…" The guard said.

"What do you want?" Eric asked.

"I'm afraid I must borrow you for a second. You may join your friends later." The guard said, Eric looking back to everyone.

"Be careful, Eric. If they try something, don't be afraid to act." Ruby said.

"Right. Hey, you got a name?" Eric asked.

"Name's Dempsey. Come on, I'll need to take you to my superiors." Dempsey said. They walked in silence, coming to a well guarded building. What surprised Eric was that some of the guards were Faunus.

'Huh. I guess with the White Fang acting so much, they finally recognize the Faunus. Good for them, I guess.' Eric thought. Soon, they came to an armored office, where there stood two men. One was Ironwood, surprising Eric somewhat. The other was the commander of the Mistral forces, Commander Richtofen.

"I see, so you did come." Ironwood said. "I suspected you would."

"Ironwood. What are you doing here?" Eric asked.

"I knew that the White Fang would most likely strike here next, so I came to reinforce Mistral with some of my soldiers." Ironwood said.

"Yeah, that worked out last time." Eric said sarcastically.

"As well, I came to give you a gift." Ironwood said, giving Eric a small chip.

"What is this?" Eric asked.

"This is an activation chip. This will activate the K13T4's alternate settings, the one that allows you to take control of Grimm. It is called the G3455." Ironwood said. Eric inserted the chip into the right side of his head, a small beep clicking.

"I feel… different somewhat." Eric said.

"Now then, onto the main topic." Richtofen said.

"Right, you were addressing me with the situation with Indominus." Ironwood said.

"Right. Lately, the Tyrants have been tearing through my forces, as well as slaying many of my most valued hunters and huntresses." Richtofen said.

"If I may, can my friends and I investigate the situation? It seems you guys need a strong and reliable team to take care of these Grimm." Eric said.

"Indeed. I will entrust you with the problem, 3R1C." Richtofen said. "You are dismissed."

"Yes, my lord." Eric said, doing a bow and exiting.

"You're taking on the Grimm army outside the city walls?" Dempsey asked.

"Yeah, what of it?" Eric said.

"I just want to know… you got some room in your team for me to help you? I want to get rid of those freakbags too." Dempsey said.

"Alright, if you insist." Eric said, the two returning to the others, who were all playing Magic and Monsters.

"You enter the village of- oh, hey Eric." Ruby said.

"The village of Oheyiric? That's a weird name." Sans said.

"Nice to see you, too. I just got ourselves a new mission, so suit up." Eric said.

"Aww, but we were in the middle of a game!" Papyrus complained.

"You'll get to continue it if we make it our alive. We need to clear the area around the kingdom of Grimm, specifically the Tyrants. If we can, we are to seal their way of getting to the city." Dempsey said.

"Man, we never can catch a break!" Papyrus sighed.

"Hopefully, we'll catch a break after this mission." Eric said, the gang equipping their gear, Ruby taking her civilian clothes instead of her usual dress, and Papyrus putting on a suit of armor, given to him by Undyne before her demise.

[One hour later, outside Mistral City]

"We're approaching a large group of Grimm. Don't make any sudden moves." Eric said, everyone staying in the shadows. Ahead, they saw a ton of Grimm, led by a gargantuan Grimm that looked like a T-Rex, what they assumed was a Tyrant. It was at least 12 feet tall, it's jaws stained with blood, as well as its massive claws.

"What a monster! There's no way we can take on that thing!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Keep your voice down. If you shout like that, they'll hear us and kill us all." Dempsey said.

"What should we do then? If we can't kill them, we can't complete the mission." Pyrrha asked.

"We have to wait for the right time to strike. If we can do that, then-" Eric said, his sentence being cut off by an explosion occurring in Mistral City. That gathered the attention of the Grimm, and made them move toward the city.

"Dammit, we have to strike now!" Dempsey said.

"Dempsey's right. We don't act now, we'll never stop them." Eric said.

"Alright, commence attack! Take out the weaker Grimm first, isolate the Tyrant!" Ruby commanded, the gang heading out, wiping out all the Beowolves and Ursi around the Tyrant, leaving it and some DeathStalkers. Eric pierced the armor of one DeathStalker with ease, leaving only two more, which Dempsey attacked, firing his Military issued MG08|15, a large full automatic machine gun with a giant magazine, killing another DeathStalker and damaging the last one, letting Ruby make the finishing blow and allowing Dempsey to reload the MG08.

"Now we can focus on the Tyrant." Ren said, firing his machine pistols, slashing when he got close enough. The Tyrant roared ferociously and slashed at Ren, sending him flying into a tree.

"Ren! I'll cover him, you guys draw his attention!" Papyrus exclaimed, rushing to Ren's aid as Jaune and Pyrrha slashed at the Tyrant.

"Pyrrha, Arkos!" Jaune exclaimed, this time Pyrrha understanding and the two throwing their shields at the Tyrant, trading shields mid air and throwing them again, repeating the pattern until the finally were together then dove with their blades and inserted them into the Tyrant's back, barely missing his spinal cord, the Tyrant roaring in pain, knocking the two off its back. It then stopped on them, a stomp that would have broken every bone in a normal person's body. However, Jaune blocked the stomp with his shield, using every ounce of strength in his body to keep the foot from crushing Pyrrha. "Pyrrha, go!"

"But what about you?" Pyrrha asked.

"That doesn't matter, my team goes before me! Just get out of the way of the foot! I won't be able to hold it for much longer!" Jaune said, struggling to stand now.

"I got you, Pyrrha!" Ruby said, activating her semblance and getting Pyrrha out of the way, Jaune combat rolling out of the way of the foot as it stomped to the ground, creating a tremor. The Tyrant then tried to snap its jaws at Jaune, trying to devour him. HE managed to not get eaten, but the bite managed to get his hood, the Tyrant lifting him into the air. "Augh! I hate heights!" Jaune screamed, flailing to try to get out out of the Tyrant's grasp, but to no avail.

"Don't fire! We might hit Jaune in the crossfire!" Dempsey shouted.

"But!" Ruby exclaimed, desperately wanting to save her comrade. As they thought Jaune was a goner, a flying object got him out of the Tyrant's grasp. They looked up to see Eric and Kieta's creation, V01D, or Void.

"Hi." Void said to Jaune.

"Uh.. hi." Jaune said, looking down and holding in vomit. "Uh, can we please get back to the ground?"

"As you wish." Void said, landing and letting Jaune down, who started barfing behind a bush.

"Well, at least he's alright." Ruby said.

"Void, engage the target!" Eric commanded.

"Yes, father." Void said, slashing the Tyrant with his claws, leaving three large claw marks on the Tyrant's dark skin. The Tyrant roared and rammed Void, smashing him into a tree. Everyone lifted their guns to help.

"Hold your fire. No need to waste bullets." Eric said.

"But we'll be letting him destroy Void." Ren said.

"You honestly think Kieta and I just went and made a robot without giving it advanced fighting protocols? Void, commence system pattern GUR3N!" Eric commanded, Void's right arm shifting into a more advanced looking arm, the claws extending and becoming sharper. Void then grabbed the Tyrant's head and squeezed, trying to break it's skull. The Tyrant thrashed around, trying to break free of Void's death grasp, succeeding after ramming it into a large rock. The Tyrant then tried ramming Void, but Void saw this coming and held out it's right arm, pushing back the Tyrant with extreme ease. Void then once again grabbed the Tyrant, this time only with the right hand. It then surged a sort of energy through the Tyrant, it's skull visibly melting and rotting, along with the rest of it's bones. Soon, Void let go, the Tyrant collapsing to the ground, it's bones liquid from the radiation.

"I have killed it, father." Void said, giving the thumbs up.

"Good work, Void. do you sense any more oncoming Grimm?" Eric asked, Void scanning the area.

"No immediate threats detected, but I am reading high heat signatures in Mistral City. They seem unnatural." Void said.

"Dammit, she struck while we were away!" Eric cursed. "We have to get back to Mistral City! Cinder's most likely struck!"

"Cinder? I thought that Ruby took care of her back at Beacon." Jaune said.

"It seems not. Perhaps she used the Autumn Maiden's powers to shield herself. We won't be rid of her that easily." Eric said.

"If that's true, then the enemy is one move ahead of us. We'll have to be smart about our next move." Dempsey said.

[Another hour later]

As they approached the city walls, they saw what should have been Mistral soldiers on the walls, but instead they saw White Fang members, patrolling the area.

"What the heck? How could they have taken control of the city within an hour?" Dempsey said.

"It's Adam. He's coming up with these strategies. That's how Beacon fell so fast. We have to cut off the final head of the Taijitu." Eric snarled, tempted to use the G3455 to get everyone inside, but he knew it would be a death trap.

"We have to stop him from awakening the Indominus, but how?" Jaune said.

"We break in and stop him!" Nora said.

"I like that idea!" Papyrus said.

"No! There would be too many, we would lose at least three of us in the battle, if not all of us." Eric said.

"Well, what's your plan then?" Papyrus asked.

"We sneak in. If we can get in unnoticed, we may have a chance to take out both Cinder and Adam, if we do this right." Eric said.

"Aaaand how do we do that?" Nora asked.

"I… don't know." Eric sighed.

"Then we break in!" Papyrus exclaimed, everyone pushing him down.

"Quiet! If they hear us, we'll be shot on the spot!" Dempsey said.

"So what's the plan?" Nora asked.

"Okay, everyone gather around. Here's the plan…" Ruby said, everyone huddling together as Ruby drew out the plan, Void using his camouflage to keep them out of sight.

A/N

Yeah, cliffhanger. We'll see what Ruby's plan is next chapter. But yes, thank you all for reading, and right now I'd like to credit those that got the answers last chapter right.

Skilz321 got questions 2, 3, and 4 right.

Boom-Ducks15 got question 1 right.

For those that didn't know, let me tell you the answers:

Question 1: Reference to the Master Sword from Legend of Zelda.

Question 2: Reference to CoD zombies characters(original survivors)

Question 3: Reference to Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Question 4: Reference to The Hobbit.

And there's your nerd dose for today! Next chapter we'll have some more references for you guys to hunt for, so look out for those. And as for what answering correctly will get you, I have decided. You will be able to see your own OC in this story. I know, I did this before, it was a disaster. But this time, I've decided to have another go at it. If it doesn't work out, sorry. Still, it gives me a chance to interact with you guys. Anyway, to the epic summary of next chapter.

{Insert DragonBall Z narrator voice here}

It seems Mistral City is in danger. As for the gang, they still do not know what the source of the new Grimm is. Will they succeed in saving the city? Or will they fail to save it and it's citizens? And what of the Indominus? Will they prevent its awakening? Or will Mistral City fall like Beacon? And will Gira keep his promise to revive Eric's dear sister? Stay tuned and find out next chapter in Rose of the Underground!


	37. Chapter 37: Battle for Mistral City

Chapter 37: Battle for Mistral City

Void stormed the wall, taking out the two White Fang up there, which drew the attention of the other White Fang, all firing on Void, just as the group had planned.

"They're taking the bait. Now we can get inside." Eric said, the group heading into the city, being met with two White Fang members. "Allow me." Eric said, focusing his eye. "Stand aside and let us pass." Eric said.

"Yes sir. As you wish." The White Fang members said, letting the group pass.

"Nice one, Eric." Ruby said.

"I have Ironwood to thank for once." Eric said, tapping his right side. "As well as Kieta for that fail safe."

"Come on, we've got to see if High Commander Richtofen is alright." Dempsey said. They ran through the city, White Fang destroying homes and buildings, chaos reigning supreme.

"This is just like my village. They attack and slaughter without mercy or conscious." Eric scoffed, anger coursing through his veins as he watched the chaos unfold.

"We have to save Richtofen first. He can then come up with a strategy to run the White Fang out." Dempsey said, finally getting to the main building. "Here! The Office of Defense of Mistral!" Dempsey exclaimed, the group running in. They got to the main office, but only to see their biggest enemy.

"Well, I was wondering when you'd show up." Cinder chuckled.

"You..! What'd you do to High Commander Richtofen?" Dempsey snarled.

"Oh, him? Let's just say he's decided to retire." Cinder said, holding up Richtofen's hat.

"You... YOU BASTARD!" Dempsey yelled, lifting up his MG08, but two White Fang held their guns to his head.

"Unless you want to join your friend in retirement, I'd suggest you put that toy away." Cinder said, Dempsey on fire with anger, but he knew better, and lowered his gun.

"How did you get here?" Eric asked, wanting to buy time to come up with a plan.

"Easy, we just had to regroup and take out the main guard. From there, it was child's play taking out Ironwood's forces." Cinder said.

Eric then finally noticed Cinder's condition. She was visibly wounded and bandaged, but she still emitted a fearsome aura. Though she was in a poor condition, she still could easily kill them all. "How did you survive Ruby's attack?" Eric asked.

"I'll admit, she took me by surprise. But you see, Kemuri was kind enough to have used himself as a shield, taking most of the attack. If it weren't for him, I'd be in much worse condition." Cinder said.

"But why would you want to awaken those monsters? Is it merely revenge? Or do you just not give a damn about life?" Eric said, his anger visualizing.

"My, such temper. I just want the Faunus to see humanity fall. We're just so used to being superior, it's time we change that." Cinder said.

"So all this is just a game of chess to you?" Eric snarled.

"I'm not the only one who thought that. Why, Ozpin treated all of you like pawns from the very beginning without you even knowing. All kingdoms use hunters and huntresses like pieces in a chess game. That is why they must fall." Cinder said.

"And stealing the Maiden's soul was your way of making yourself a queen?" Eric implied.

"I guess when you put it that way, it makes some sense. My, you sure are brighter than you look. Perhaps..." Cinder smirked.

"Perhaps what?" Eric said, reaching for the Aster Sword.

"Perhaps you should become another of my chess pieces. It only takes a single word: 3R1C-2." Cinder said, Eric falling to his knees.

"GAH! What- what are you- GAAAAAH!" Eric screamed, clutching his head, writhing in pain. Soon, he stopped struggling and stood up straight, his eyes dazed and no longer in control. "I am ready to serve you, Lady Cinder."

"Eric, what are you doing?!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Ah, he's no longer the Eric you knew. Now, he is the mindless drone you fought before." Cinder chuckled. "3R1C-2, annihilate these people."

"As you... wish." Eric said, seemingly trying to fight back.

"No Eric! Snap out of it!" Kieta exclaimed in his mind, fighting the long sleeping code that now awakened.

"Eric, please! Don't make us fight you!" Ruby said, tears starting to form in her eyes.

"Ruby, that isn't Eric anymore! We have to fight or die!" Papyrus said, taking out Meatball.

"3R1C-2, engage." Cinder commanded, Eric dashing with both Aster Sword and Vortex, Ruby blocking the strike from Aster Sword, Jaune blocking the other strike. Eric gritted his teeth and his mechanical enhancements activated, his strength greatly enhancing.

"Hey guys, hope you aren't gonna watch us die." Jaune said, struggling to keep his shield up. Ren fired some rounds into Eric, making him step back, letting Ruby and Jaune get a breather. Now, Eric's eyes were more focused.

"I'm trying to get the real Eric back on, you guys have to keep fighting him until I can get the code out!" Eric said.

"Wait, are you speaking in the third person now?" Ruby asked.

"No, right now, I'm Kieta. You HAVE to stop him. Try to knock him out, it'll be easier to erase the code then. I'll try to hold him so you have time to breathe, but-" Kieta said, Eric's head shaking.

"Stay out of this, K13T4! This mission is for you!" Eric said, slashing again. This time, Papyrus intervened and bashed him with Meatball, sending him flying through the window.

"You guys go after Eric. I'm gonna avenge Richtofen." Dempsey said, pulling out his MG08.

"But you'll be destroyed! Dempsey, this isn't the type of enemy you can just waltz with." Pyrrha said.

"I know that! Now go, before Eric kills civilians!" Dempsey shouted, the group going through the hole. "Now, time for you to know the power of a true soldier."

Eric tossed Vortex to slow down Ruby, but she blocked the blade, which then returned to Eric. He then fired his hand cannon at the group, who all dodged out of the way of the blast.

"Remember, neutralize him if you can! We don't want to kill him if we don't have to!" Pyrrha said, firing a round at Eric, who blocked the bullet with Vortex. He then fired his hand cannon at the rooftop, creating a giant hole.

"He's trying to slow us down! Split up, try to corner him! Leave knocking him out to Papyrus!" Ruby commanded, everyone splitting at the hole, Ruby and Papyrus going together, Jaune and Pyrrha going together, then Ren and Nora, and Dempsey was nowhere to be seen.

"Ruby, grab on to my cape!" Papyrus said, Ruby gripping on to Papyrus's cape as he launched Meatball to the top of a tall building. "FOR UNDYYYYYYYYNE!" Papyrus cried, the two flying into the air, on top of the building where Eric was.

"Boy, you two are persistent. If you were this good, why couldn't you have saved Kieta?" Eric snarled, unleashing a slash of light with Aster Sword, making the two split, Papyrus launching Meatball at Eric, hitting him square in the head. "You'll have to try harder than that to stop me!" Eric yelled, firing his hand cannon at Papyrus, knocking Meatball out of his hand and off the roof.

"You blasted my Meatball! Now get ready for some Spaghetti, specially crafted by me, the great Papyrus!" Papyrus shouted, taking out an iron chain about 30 yards long and flailing it around, continually hitting Eric. Soon, he got annoyed at this and grabbed the chain, but Papyrus saw this coming and activated the chain's secondary function, unleashing a 'hearty zap', shocking Eric. "Yay! For once, I didn't shock myself!" Papyrus cheered.

"Keep it up, you two! I almost got the override on the code, just a few more minutes!" Kieta said, Eric quickly pushing her back into his mind.

"I said stay out of this! They were the ones that let you die, they must suffer for their sins!" Eric shouted, his left hand charging a bright blue energy.

"Papyrus, watch out!" Jaune exclaimed, pulling Papyrus down as Eric fired a beam of pure energy that would have pierced any aura, even Jaune's.

"Thanks, human!" Papyrus said.

"Don't mention it. Nora!" Jaune exclaimed, Nora leaping from the roof.

"IT'S HAMMER TIIIIIME!" Nora shouted, slamming Eric with her hammer, sending him flying. She then launched a grenade at her feet and went flying after him, slamming him back to the ground, causing a great crater.

"Well, that's one way to get him down. I hope she didn't overdo it." Ren said.

"Let's get over there to see if he's still alive." Ruby said, the group heading to the crater to see Eric trapped in rubble. He struggled to move, but the mass was enough to trap him, and he was unable to use his hand cannon due to the rubble blocking the palm, so it would backfire and most likely blow his arm off.

"This will at least give us a break." Jaune said.

"Let's hope Kieta can override the code now." Ruby said, the group waiting for a few minutes until Eric stopped struggling.

"Alright, I finally stopped the code. Once I go back into Eric's subconscious, he should be back to normal." Kieta said, Eric blinking a few times before his eyes finally focused.

"Ugh, what happened? All I remember is us talking to Cinder, then she... that's right! She activated the code that Adam put into me back in the Atlas labs!" Eric said.

"And you're back to your normal self now?" Ruby asked.

"Last I checked." Eric said.

"Alright. Let's get him out." Ruby said, the group removing the rubble trapping Eric.

"I'm sorry to have caused you so much trouble. Thanks for, well, not killing me." Eric said.

"We need all the hunters we can get, so we didn't want to lose you." Ren said.

"Alright! Now that Eric is back, we can drive the White Fang out!" Papyrus cheered.

"You're forgetting something. We also need to make sure they don't awaken Indominus, otherwise we can kiss this place, heck, our lives, goodbye." Eric said.

"Yeah, I know, but how do we know how or where they're going to awaken it?" Jaune asked.

"That, I don't know. But either way, we have to try. For the sake of everyone, living and dead." Eric said.

"Eric's right! At a time like this, Undyne wouldn't just sit around and cry over this! She would take action and search for clues! We have to prevail, for Undyne! For Kieta! FOR SPAGHETTI! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus cheered.

"Well, gotta give him credit, he does know how to make a grim situation livelier." Ruby said.

"Well, first thing's first, let's drive put the White Fang. Once we do that, Mistral City will give us the supplies we need to hunt for Adam. He's probably setting up for it's awakening right no-" Eric said, a tremor shaking the whole city. "No. It can't be."

"Now I get it. The ancient Grimm can only awaken when it feeds on enough chaos. That's why they destroyed Vale and Mistral." Ruby said, her theory making everything clear to the group. Soon, the whole mountain erupted, an eardrum rupturing roar filling the air. They looked to the mountain to see a Titan Grimm the form of a Tyrant standing in its place, a whole army of Tyrants following.

"We're too late. I fear we may have lost this battle." Ren said.

"No! We can't give up yet! It may be a giant Grimm, but it's not a god! If we can stop it, victory is ours!" Papyrus said.

"You're an optimist, I'll say that much Papyrus." Pyrrha said.

"If Haven Academy recognizes this threat, then they'll take action, no doubt." Jaune said.

"So we need to drive out the Grimm and the White Fang, regroup, and strategize on how to take out the Indominus. Well, it was nice fighting by your sides." Eric said.

"Eric, you got a special item from Ironwood, correct? Why not use it?" Ren suggested.

"Hmm... Good point." Eric said.

"Speaking of the White Fang, here comes a few." Sans said casually, a group of White Fang members approaching with weapons drawn.

"Guys... Stand back and close your eyes." Eric said, everyone backing up. "White Fang, I have a question I would like you to answer. If being powerless is so, terribly wrong, then does having power make you right?"

"We have tried peace, but nothing came of it. Power against the strong is the only way they'll fall." A White Fang member said.

"I see... then that reality is the same for you. I, Eric Aeild, command you, all of you, DIE!" Eric commanded, activating the G3445 Ironwood gave him, it controlling them all.

"Yes, your highness!" The White Fang said, aiming their guns at each other and firing, all of them killing each other.

"Wow Eric, that was violent." Sans said.

"They were the ones who took several innocent lives. The only ones who should kill are those who are prepared to be killed." Eric said.

"Well that's dark." Jaune said.

"Either way, we should get going. Standing around won't stop Indominus, and the White Fang aren't going to kick themselves out." Eric said.

"I dunno about that. The White Fang seem to be leaving." Sans said. Sure enough, they saw the White Fang escaping the city.

"They're well aware of the destruction Indominus will bring upon this place, so they're saving their own, just like at Beacon. The cowards, they cause chaos, sit back I safety and comfort and congratulate themselves. They want peace, and they cause destruction. Void!" Eric said, avoid coming to him.

"What do you need, father?" Void asked.

"I want you to scan the area and find the White Fang's escape routes. Once you've done that, get to each and every one and destroy it. If you can, make sure none are able to leave. If the people are to die today, we'll take the White Fang with us. I'll make sure they die with us and burn in hell, even if I have to drag them down there with me." Eric said, clearly enraged.

"Eric, you can't possibly be saying this." Ruby said.

"If it means destroying the greater evil, I will stain my hands with evil to rid the world of it." Eric said.

"Eric, feelings like this will only consume you and change you for the worse. I'm sure Adam was engulfed the same way." Pyrrha said.

"She's right. If you let anger and hatred run you, those feelings will eventually consume your mind and make you become the greater evil." Ren said.

"Nonetheless, they won't escape! They must repent for their sins! It's not just Kieta I'm trying to avenge, it's Undyne and Penny too. If Adam never showed up, they'd still be here! We have to make sure their deaths weren't for nothing!" Eric said.

"We will make sure the White Fang face the consequences for their crimes, yes, but killing them directly is not the way. If we do this, it'll just put off the wrong idea, and more Faunus will rise against us. They'll say we killed them because they were Faunus." Pyrrha said.

Eric gritted his teeth as he said "Void... Forget the command I just gave. Right now, make sure no Grimm come into the city. If we can't save the city, we'll have to evacuate. Once reinforcements arrive from Haven, we'll finally have a chance of beating Indominus. And as for us, we need to get the civilians out of the way of danger. If we can't stop the White Fang from escaping, we can at least lessen the casualties. As for us, we'll guard the civilians until reinforcements arrive from Haven Academy. They'll most likely bring airships to pick up the civilians, so focus on getting them out before any fighters. If we can evacuate everyone, we can focus on bringing down the Indominus." Eric explained.

"Sounds like a plan. Let's get the people to safety like the hunters and huntresses we are!" Ruby said.

[For best effect, play Undertale OST Hopes and Dreams in the background]

As they gathered the civilians, they began to see some monsters that were trying to also save the humans. As well, some familiar faces to Ruby began to show up, like Greater Dog(not to be mistaken for Toby), Napstablook, and even Muffet and Mettaton NEO.

"Ruby darling, good to see you again! How has the huntress deal been going for you?" Mettaton said.

"Hey Mettaton! Yeah, we're helping the civilians get to safety before the Indominus arrives." Ruby said.

"You mean that great big monster? Oh, I certainly can help. I'll provide air support, with my fabulous wings." Mettaton said, taking to the skies and raining down blades of energy on some Grimm, giving the others some more time.

"Thank you." Ruby said, a Grimm nearly getting her if it weren't for another familiar face. "Qrow!"

"Hey there, kiddo. You should watch your back more often. That Indominus is closing in fast, so we need to evacuate these people soon." Qrow said.

"Incoming Tyrants! Get the civilians out of its path!" Papyrus exclaimed over Ruby's scroll.

"We'd better help them." Qrow said.

"Yeah, good idea." Ruby agreed, the two rushing to help their friends. As they did, more and more people and monsters began fighting, their ferocity admirable. 'If this keeps up, we might not need Haven's help after all.' Ruby thought, slashing through a Creep. As they got to the broken wall, they saw the battle raging, two Tyrants battling Jaune and Void. Meanwhile, Pyrrha and Papyrus provided ranged support, Papyrus using Spaghetti and Meatball, Pyrrha using the rifle mode of her weapon.

"We should probably help." Qrow said, aiming his weapon, Ruby doing the same as the two opened fire, aiming for the Tyrants' big heads, some rounds getting right in between the eyes and making them step back, allowing Jaune to get a few slashes in on them. Void then activated one of his subroutines and fired a beam of heat at a Tyrant, melting it within seconds.

"Couldn't he have opened with that?" Ruby questioned.

"Good news! The Grimm are retreating! We have some time to evacuate some civilians!" Papyrus said.

"No, this isn't good news. They're regrouping outside the walls. They plan to attack us head on with the Indominus, an attack that would wipe us out in no time. Those Haven guys had better get here quick!" Eric said, everyone regrouping and forming a plan.

"It's no good. No matter what we come up with, the Indominus always stays as a wall. We're one move behind in this game, and we short many pieces. If Haven send reinforcements soon, we'll have enough fire power to at least hold the Indominus back." Ruby said.

"We'll have to improvise until they arrive, so hold some perimeters around the walls and make sure nothing gets in or nothing goes out. Once again, our main goal is to stop the Indominus while trying to lessen the casualties as much as possible." Qrow said.

"I think our improvise will have to wait. Here comes some help." Sans said, five or six bullheads flying into the city, dropping off a ton of hunters and huntresses.

"Excellent. Alright, lets get to business. Haven students, you'll be holding the line around the west side of the city. That's where they'll strike. Have your best close range fighters take the breaches in the wall, while your ranged hunters take position on top of the wall and aid the close range fighters. Those who wish to, help get the civilians on the bullheads and get them out of the city. Once everyone's evacuated, meet up with the strike forces in the front line. For the rest of us, our job is to provide strategic support and to make sure no one dies." Qrow commanded.

"You're a lot better at this when you're sober." Sans said.

"Don't get used to it. Alrighty people, lets get to work!" Qrow said, everyone shouting and raising arms.

"Long live Remnant!" They cheered, going to the breach.

"Alright, Ruby, Jaune and I will provide strategic support from here. Everyone else, I wish you luck." Qrow said.

"Long live Remnant!" Papyrus cheered, the rest running to the front lines.

"I shall also provide some support." Gira said.

"Very well." Qrow said.

"We'll help get everyone to safety. I'm starting to get deja vou." Kerási said, her and Vasha going to help the civilians to safety.

"Then we're ready. Let's get to a place where we can see the field." Qrow said, the four going off. They went to the Office of Mistral Defense and found a digital map of the city, as well as it showing everyone on the front lines and the Grimm. "Perfect. Now we can organize strategies from here."

"Here comes a wave of Grimm. Beowolves and Borbatusks by the looks." Ruby said.

"Alright. Close range, get ready to engage!" Qrow said. Some hunters then charged at the Grimm, slashing the Beowolves in half and gutting the Borbatusks. Fortunately, no one was killed in the wave.

"Very good. Another wave is coming, these seem to be Alpha Creeps and a few Mutants. Ranged, shoot the Mutants before they can get a chance to engage!" Gira said.

"They seem to be saving their stronger forces for later in the battle. The Indominus must be aware of our forces." Jaune said.

"He's right. They want to wait for us to be worn out before they send the big guns. All forces, conserve your energy. They want to wear us out before they send their stronger forces, so don't go all out unless necessary." Qrow ordered.

"Concentrate fire on the lower bank! There's a large Creep pack waiting there, so decrease their numbers!" Gira ordered, many of the Grimms' forces being wiped out.

"Right. Eric's group, move forward and take out the Grimm in the area. Lavender's group, cover Eric's group from the rear." Ruby said, Eric and his group moving forward and taking out multiple Grimm, Lavender and her group taking out the Grimm that came to assault them.

"We have a Tyrant coming! All ranged groups, focus fire on it. If we can find a weak point in its armor, we may have a better chance!" Qrow said.

"I suggest we have Eric's group fall back. If they stay there, they'll get wiped out." Jaune said.

"Acknowledged. Eric's group, fall back and regroup with the others. Once the Tyrant gets in close, try to find a weak spot. Every Grimm has one." Qrow said.

"But sir, we got a clear shot of the Tyrant! We could easily take it out in one fell swoop." Eric said

"Overconfidence gets you killed, Eric. Remember, your life isn't the only thing at stake. You have a group to lead now, so act like a leader." Qrow said.

"Yes sir." Eric grumbled, his group falling back.

"Papyrus's group, hold the line and make sure no Grimm get past our perimeter." Jaune said. Papyrus complied and his group killed any Grimm in sight.

"Sans, fire Gaster Blaster straight ahead at the Tyrant, see if it does anything." Gira said. Sans fired Gaster Blaster at the Tyrant, the Grimm stumbling back and eventually dying. "Alright. Tyrant is down. We got some more coming in, about five of them. Take them out quickly."

"Eric, send in Void to at least slow them down. We also got some DeathStalkers coming in, so be cautious." Ruby said.

"We're actually doing it. We can! We can defend Mistral!" Eric exclaimed, slashing through a DeathStalker. Void used the L4NC3 subroutine and drew two giant swords, slashing through Ursi and DeathStalkers, coming to the Tyrants and decapitating the first one with one well placed swing. After that, he charged forward, impaling another Tyrant and throwing the corpse at another one, stabbing the Tyrant through the corpse. That only left two, one of which charged Void and rammed him into a tree, chomping into his arm.

"Ouch." Void said. "That was my favorite arm." Void then fired a ball of energy into the Tyrant's mouth, evaporating its skull. Then, the last Tyrant roared into the air, seemingly calling for backup. Void cut it short by grabbing the Tyrant's head and twisting its neck. That shut it up for good.

"We got a lot of Grimm coming! That Tyrant got his wish." Jaune said.

"There's no way we can hold out against this many!" Ruby exclaimed, seeing the giant force that was charging toward them.

"Don't panic. It looks like they are abandoning form and are using a direct attack, so I suggest we do the same." Gira said.

"But Gira, that would mean we're sending a ton of students to die!" Ruby said.

"If we don't hold out against this, then we lost. The Indominus is a coward and will only show up when he thinks we can't fight back. All forces, commence seek and destroy!" Gira ordered.

"But Gira, this is suicide!" Eric exclaimed.

"Yes. It will be a miracle if we can pull this off." Gira said plainly.

"So you admit we're sacrificing them!" Jaune yelled.

"All great victories come with a price. That is the real world." Gira said.

"If we fail, we at least fail fighting and doing our job!" Papyrus said.

Ruby, Jaune, and Qrow exchanged varying glances, Ruby not exactly sceptical about this idea, Jaune regretting ever coming here, and Qrow knowing the sacrifice they have to make. "We have to hold Mistral City. All forces, seek and destroy." Qrow said.

Ruby and Jaune knew they couldn't avoid this. "Do it." Ruby and Jaune said.

"Let's do it! For Asgore!" Papyrus cheered, all of them charging into battle. The two forces clashed, the Grimm slashing and thrashing, trying to get the upper hand on the hunters. However, though the Grimm outnumbered the hunters, their strength came in their skill, which allowed them to easily push them back, and with little to no casualties.

"LONG LIVE REMNANT!" The hunters cheered as the Grimm fell back. Then, a tremor shook the whole place, making their celebration short lived.

"So, here comes the king of the Grimm." Eric chuckled, reading his sword. Then, the familiar eardrum rupturing roar shook the whole area, making everyone cover their ears. Mountains crumbled as the king of the Grimm rose from hiding, his evil aura expanding for miles, nearly completely blocking out the sun. A spine chilling presence loomed over everyone, like their very souls were trying to escape this beast.

"It's even more terrifying than before. How can one Grimm manage this much power?" Pyrrha said.

"No, it's not just the Indominus. I'm sensing another being inside of it." Eric said.

"The Shadow King. He's controlling the Indominus." Ren said.

"Then how do we stop it?" Nora asked.

"We have to try. If we don't, all the kingdoms will fall." Eric said.

"Everyone, this is the decisive battle. If we succeed, then victory is possible." Gira said.

"And if we lose?" Papyrus asked.

"Then humanity and all living things will perish with us." Gira replied grimly.

"That's a nice thought." Sans said sarcastically.

"This battle... we will lose some people today. But know this: those that fall today, they will not be forgotten! This battle is the ultimate test! If we take down the Indominus, then the day is ours!" Eric exclaimed.

"Long live Remnant!" Papyrus cheered, repeating the cheer until the whole place was filled with cheers. "LONG LIVE REMNANT! LONG LIVE REMNANT!"

A/N

Ahh, cliffhangers. How I hate them with a passion. Queue the rage reviews. Anyway, yes, time for another episode of 'Who's the Nerdiest?'.

Reference 1: From what anime is the G3455, GUR3N, and L4NC3 from?

Reference 2: From what movie is the name Indominus from?

Not many references today, but still something. Also, allow me to sweeten the deal for getting these right. Not only will you have the chance to insert your own OC, but also you have the choice of having your own idea being put into this story, whether it be a certain event happening or just as simple as giving a weapon. I did say I wanted this to be a slightly interactive story, so there you have it.

Anyway, enough with the nerd stuff. I really appreciate all the support you all give. I know I've said this a thousand times, but I can't thank you all enough. You have no idea how humbling it is having such a large fan base recognize such a little story like this. But yeah, now for the next chapter look-ins.

[Ruby POV]

Even the greatest of warriors come to realize their worst fears. I never expected this to be the way. But I must prevail, for the future of humanity and monsters. But can we defeat a nightmare like this? No, I mustn't doubt our strength now. We can win, because we must. There'll be deaths, yes, but as long as we can defeat this beast, then the future will continue to live on. And because of that, that is why we fight. We shall not fall now, not when we've come so far! For the sake of those who have died, we will carry on!

Next chapter: Chapter 38: Power of the Heart.


	38. Chapter 38: Power of the Heart

Chapter 38: Power of the Heart

As the pitch black beast trampled over the valley standing between it and Mistral City, the hunters and huntresses grew less confident of their victory. But some were more determined to save the world.

"All my fellow hunters and huntresses, heed my words! The White Fang have caused the awakening of the two ancient Grimm, and they will cause unparalleled destruction if we do not stop them here and now! I know some may die, but we will triumph over this! The hopes and dreams of everyone; Humanity, monsters, and Faunus alike, they all are crying out! If we can kill the Indominus, then victory is ours! Let the future march on! Crush the Grimm! Show the world the might and determination of humanity and monsters!" Eric rallied, everyone cheering for victory. Then, the shadow waves crashed down on the ground, unleashing a horde of Grimm. "So it begins. All forces, attack!"

The two forces then clashed, Grimm limbs flying and bullets and swords clashing with armor and claws. Soon, the shadows summoned forth DeathStalkers, giving Eric some unwanted flashbacks. He slammed his right hand to the ground and sent electric bolts at the Grimm, evaporating a fraction of them. Ruby then flashed forward, slashing a Beowolf in half. Papyrus then swung Spaghetti at a line of Beowolves, cutting them all down within seconds. Soon, tougher Grimm started showing up, such as Ursi and King Taijitus. They fought with all the malice they could muster, but soon some hunters started to fall, their numbers growing weaker.

"We can't fight like this for much longer." Ruby said.

"Yes. The Grimm have shown much strength, forcing me to use this card." Eric said. "Void, engage all weapon systems!"

"Yes sir. Engaging all weapons." Void said, half of his metallic body reacting.

"Uh, how many weapons does Void have?" Ruby asked.

"Um, I'd have to say about... Six." Eric said.

"That's a lot of weapons." Ruby said.

"Yeah, we may have gone a bit overboard with designing him." Eric said. Void now had three flying blades, an energy sword, a radiant cannon, and his own energy skull ready. "Void, engage!"

"Engaging." Void said, the flying blades activating and piercing the armor of the DeathStalkers, his energy sword sending small blades of energy at the Grimm, his radiant cannon firing and evaporating a flank of Grimm, and his energy skull firing a massive beam of energy, shattering the shadow barrier.

"That should give us an opening. All forces, fire on the Indominus!" Eric commanded, everyone now focusing fire on the Indominus. Though the power was impressive, it only seemed to make the beast angrier. The earth then erupted darkness, countless Grimm rising from the cracks and charging straight for Mistral.

"Oh my God. There's no way we can fight that many!" Jaune exclaimed.

"Fool! If we do not fight, we'll die anyway, along with all humanity!" Gira said, trying to control the Grimm, but the Indominus's control was too great, even stronger than Kemuri. "Ugh, it's no use! I can't break through the Indominus's power!"

"Stay strong! If we fail, then the world is doomed to fall!" Qrow said, slashing an Ursa in half. However, at this point, not many believed that. So many of their own had fallen, and the Grimm only seemed to be getting stronger.

"Is this... really how our story ends? Was everything we did until now for nothing?" Ruby said in despair.

"Don't give up hope! Ruby! Stay determined!" Asriel yelled in Ruby's mind. As he said that, a Beowolf that was about to slay another Hunter was sliced in half. Ruby turned to see Takeo from Forunichi.

"Team, to arms!" Takeo exclaimed, the other members of STEN appearing.

"We will not let humanity fall!" Samantha said, slashing an Ursa into pieces.

"We got more backup! It looks like Atlas reinforcements!" Papyrus exclaimed, numerous bullheads flying overhead. Soldiers dropped from them and fired on the Grimm, saving a few hunters and huntresses from death.

"Ironwood, you beautiful bastard." Eric laughed. Soon, a larger bullhead came in, dropping a metallic wingless dragon, somewhat similar design to avoid. "They completed project N0V4?"

"The what now?" Ruby asked.

"It's a project they started on shortly after they finished Kieta and I. Honestly, we made Void just to rub it into Ironwood's face." Eric chuckled.

"And now he's got a counter to ours." Kieta said.

"Well, that's to be seen. Void, fire the radiant cannon!" Eric said. Void then fired his right arm cannon, killing a few Grimm. Nova then charged into battle and grabbed a DeathStalker with its teeth, flailing it around like a dog toy. The DeathStalker tried to stab Nova, but it's armor was superior to its own. Nova then bit into the hard shell, cracking the armor and destroying the DeathStalker's bones. Nova then threw it out of the way and gave a metallic roar, charging the Indominus directly. The two beasts clashed, both of them trying to find a weak point in their armor. Nova couldn't seem to find a spot, even with its advanced sensors, but the Indominus could find one, and took advantage of it. It sent Nova into a hill side, crumbling the whole hill on top of it. It then took the head and was about to crunch on the most vital part: the neck. But as it did, something got in the way. The Indominus then saw that Void was prying open the Indominus's jaws with his energy sword.

"I will protect you, brother from another mother." Void said, throwing back the Indominus.

"There's no way the Indominus could have withstood the power of the energy blade. Unless... It has an aura of its own!" Eric said.

"But how could a Grimm emit an aura?" Ruby asked.

"It's not the Indominus projecting the aura. Either nature is against us, or another being is sharing its power with the Indominus." Eric said.

"You mean the Shadow King? I thought we'd seen the last of him back at the temple." Ruby said.

"I thought so too. That explains why Gira couldn't control the Grimm. The Indominus itself could never produce this much power on its own. If we're to kill it, we need to rid it of the Shadow King." Eric said.

"But how? There's no way we could get on that thing. And if we did, the Shadow King would just send us off, right?" Jaune said.

"I think I have an idea. You guys seen that one scene in Galactic Battles?" Nora said.

"I think Nora's onto something. Papyrus, you can extend Spaghetti further than thirty yards, right?" Eric asked.

"Yeah, why?" Papyrus said.

"Ruby, I want you to take hold of Spaghetti and use your semblance to spin around the Indominus's legs." Eric said.

"Ooh, I see what you're getting at. Papyrus, let's do this." Ruby said.

"Alright! Spaghetti power!" Papyrus exclaimed, throwing Spaghetti and extending it to its fullest length. Ruby caught the end and activated her semblance, running around the Indominus's legs as planned. She made extra caution to not get herself caught in the chain. Soon, the chain was fully wrapped around the legs. Ruby then let go and tried to get the Indominus's attention. Fortunately, it worked. Unfortunately, once the Indominus tried to move, it toppled over... with Ruby right in the landing zone.

"Uh oh." Ruby said, running as fast as she could. She barely got out of the way in time before the Indominus crashed down, the Shadow King falling off.

"You lot. You sure are causing a lot of problems for me. Well, I'll give you credit for being able to trap the Indominus. But it matters not. Besides, from what I hear from you, you'll just be doing me a favor. I don't particularly like the White Fang, but I do thank them for releasing me. You must understand how awfully boring it is being imprisoned for thousands of years. Now, I would fight you, but with that pesky little razor you have, I'll consider this my farewell. Till next time, and trust me, there will be a next time." The Shadow King said, vanishing into thin air. The Indominus then struggled to get back up.

"Now's our chance. All forces, fire on the Indominus!" Eric commanded, everyone firing at once; the hunters, the bullheads, even the robots. Soon, the Indominus let out an ear bleeding cry before its life ended.

"We... did it. We actually did it." Ruby said, her heart racing. The Grimm then ran in fear, seeing the ancient Grimm lifeless and decaying.

"Victory is ours. We saved Mistral City." Gira said, everyone cheering as one. The shadows covering the sun soon faded, light shining upon the wrecked, but still standing, city.

"This war is still not over yet. Kemuri still lives. We managed to kill one of the ancient Grimm, but Kemuri will not be as easily defeated. When I struck him, his armor was unparalleled, even without the Shadow King's power." Eric said.

"Yeah, yeah. I get that we still got Kemuri to deal with, but let's just take a break. After all, we were able to kill an ancient Grimm. Not many can say that." Sans said.

"Sans has the right idea. Once we can, we need to rebuild the city, refresh, and bury our fallen." Kerási said.

"For now, let's focus on rebuilding the wall. Once that's done, then we can finally catch a break." Gira said.

"Let's get building!" Papyrus said, not many as excited.

[Many hours later...]

The hunters had finally built a suitable wall, but not permanent. Only enough to keep the Grimm out.

"Can we... finally... rest?" Jaune said, sweat pouring from his face.

"Yes, for now. Once we do, though, we need to give the fallen proper burials. It's what they deserve." Vasha said. Everyone then got around to relaxing, a feeling they haven't felt in a long time.

"You know, it's kinda nice to finally kick back and be able to rest for a while." Eric sighed.

"Yeah, no kidding. With all that's happened so far, we deserve at least this." Ruby said.

"Agh, you got to be kidding." Eric said, taking his jacket off.

"What's wrong?" Ruby asked.

"My favorite jacket's ruined." Eric said, showing Ruby the many tears and burns on it.

"Dang. Well, it could be worse." Ruby said.

"Yeah, true. I just hope we can find a suitable vessel for Kieta." Eric said.

"Wait, what?" Ruby said.

"Oh, right. Gira said it may be possible to save Kieta. Since Gira has her... Brain, and I have her AI, once we find a good body for her, we could possibly resurrect Kieta." Eric said.

"That would be amazing. But where would we find a vessel for her?" Ruby asked.

"Well..." Eric said, his thoughts being cut off by Gira.

"I may have an idea that'll kill two Nevermores with one bullet. The way to Atlas is cut off, since they want to keep the White Fang out. However, there's an old Atlas freighter on the border of Mistral. If we can get it to work, we can sail to Atlas. And, if we're lucky, we could find a vessel for Kieta." Gira explained.

"Well, sounds like our day. I assume Atlas will assist in the reconstruction of Mistral City, so we can get moving by tomorrow." Eric said.

"I'll brief the others on the situation." Gira said, heading off.

"Well, looks like things are finally going in our favor. But should we really leave before Mistral City is fully repaired?" Ruby asked.

"We're hunters, not constructors. If we're to stop Kemuri, Smaug is to awaken as well. If we can tame Smaug and defeat Kemuri, then victory might be ours." Eric said.

"But what about Blake and Weiss?" Ruby asked.

"If we find them, then we'll have a better chance at victory. If we don't, then we can look for them after the war is over. I promise you we'll find them." Eric said.

"Thanks." Ruby said. The two then sat in silence for a while.

"So... should we help them?" Eric asked.

"Yeah." Ruby said.

[A few hours later]

Soon, they were able to secure a suitable safe zone, where they were able to rest and keep the survivors.

"Hopefully Mistral City will be rebuilt soon." Ruby said.

"I'm sure they will. And soon, Vale will be ours too." Jaune said.

"I just hope everyone there was able to get out. Both in Vale and Mt. Ebott." Ruby said.

"I'm sure they did. We just got to keep our heads held up and make sure we can take it all back." Pyrrha said.

"She's right. That is our job after all." Eric said.

"Let's not forget, we still have Smaug to deal with." Vasha said.

"About that, how are we going to get to Atlas?" Jaune asked.

"I thought Gira told you all. We're going to use a recently abandoned Atlas freighter. It may provide armor, weapons, and a way to get to Atlas. However, there might be a chance of the White Fang beating us to it, so we're heading for it first thing tomorrow." Eric said.

"But what about everyone here?" Ren asked.

"If we don't hurry, more will end up like this. Not just Atlas, but Vacuo as well. The reason the ancient beasts weren't awakened before is because of their untamable rage. If they are to awaken under the influence of the White Fang, the Grimm will be the least of our worries." Eric said.

"He's right. The longer we wait, the sooner the White Fang will overcome all the kingdoms. The death of the Indominus was just a setback for them. If they awaken even one of the ancient beasts, it's game over." Kerási said.

"But wasn't it our objective to awaken them? If we awaken them, wouldn't we be doing the White Fangs job for them?" Jaune said.

"It's true, we'll be risking everything we've done up until now, but it's either we stop the White Fang once and for all or destroy their plans to destroy the way of life. Either way, Kemuri is still a variable, so our main objective is to awaken Smaug and kill Kemuri." Eric said.

"That's understood, but what happens after that?" Kerási asked.

"If our plan succeeds, we then take down the White Fang. If we succeed in that, then the war ends, and peace returns to Remnant." Eric said.

"Eric, I believe you are mistaking quiet for peace. Even if we succeed in dismantling the White Fang, it will only repeat the disaster. Someone else will arise and take their place." Gira said. "I propose we try to negotiate with the White Fang. If we bring true equality, then perhaps peace will truly come."

"That may be, but they cannot simply be forgiven for their crimes." Eric said.

"We know this, and they will be brought to justice, but we also have to realize the reason why they take these actions." Ruby said.

"Let's save the arguing. Right now, we need to rest. We have another long day ahead of us." Jaune said.

"Jaune's right. For now, let us rest. Besides, we may be able to regain a piece, so to speak." Gira said. Everyone then went to rest for tomorrow.

[The next day]

"You're leaving already?" Samantha said.

"Yeah, we still have much to do. We trust you all can handle the reconstruction of Mistral City without us." Ruby said.

"Yeah, we got Atlas assisting as well." Eddie said.

"Well then, until we meet again." Ren said, the group heading out. They went out the north side, closest to the Atlas freighter. It took a few miles, but soon they finally reached the ship. It was easily half a mile long.

"This is it?" Ruby asked.

"Correct. Inside, we should find some Atlas weaponry, armor, and other useful supplies that will exponentially aid us." Gira said.

"Well, we should still be safe. Void, can you scan the ship to see if any Grimm or White Fang are on it?" Eric said.

"Affirmative." Void said, scanning the ship. "I do not detect any recent human signs, but I do detect a few Grimm. They appear to be mostly Mutants."

"What are Merlot's creations doing here?" Ruby said.

"No idea, but we should be careful. One suicide Mutant Creep can completely destroy your aura if you aren't careful." Eric said.

"Yeah, that's good and all, but how exactly are we going to get on the ship?" Jaune asked.

"Now that you mention it, there doesn't seem to be any way to get on it." Ruby said.

"That's easily fixed. You see that crane on the ship? We can use that." Gira said.

"Aaaaand how exactly DO we get it over here?" Papyrus asked.

"Void can activate it." Gira said.

"My flight components are still operational. Chances of this working are favorable." Void said.

"Alright then. Void, fly over to the freighter and bring the crane over here." Eric said.

"Aye aye." Void said, flying over to the freighter. He then placed his hand on the crane, manually pushing it over to them, the crane smashing into the cliff side.

"Well, that's one way to move a crane." Jaune said.

"I got a feeling that didn't go unnoticed. We should hurry across." Ruby said, her point made by Grimm howls filling the air.

"Yeah, she's right. Hurry!" Kerási said, everyone running across the crane. Some stumbled on the way, but none fell fortunately.

"I think we're-" Vasha said, being cut off by a Mutant Beowolf jumping to the deck. "Right. Mutants."

"We'll take care of them! Everyone else make sure none of the Grimm get across!" Papyrus said, him, Ruby, and Kerási charging the Beowolf. The remaining watched over the crane, shooting down any Grimm that attempted to cross. Void was trying to push the crane back, but it was wedged in the cliff.

"The cliff is keeping the crane in place. I cannot move it." Void said.

"Can't we just destroy the crane?" Jaune asked.

"Yes, but then how would we get back onto land?" Vasha said.

"We could use Papyrus's Spaghetti." Kerási suggested.

"No, it would be too weak to anchor." Vasha said.

"What about Void? He could individually lift us up." Pyrrha said.

"His flight capabilities are strong, but only enough to carry him. If we put additional weight, even that of a person, they would fail." Eric said.

"We have to keep the crane. Nora, try to blow off some of the cliff to free the crane." Vasha said. Nora then switched her weapon to grenade launcher mode and fired it at the cliff, managing to get some of the crane freed. Void was then able to move the crane, but as soon as he did, a DeathStalker caught it with its tail.

"Damn! The Grimm really don't want us to leave." Eric cursed.

"We took care of the Mutant, but there are still more!" Ruby said.

"This is not looking good. Everyone, take out the DeathStalker! If we manage to get away from here, then that reduces our enemies by a lot." Kerási said. Everyone then opened fire on the DeathStalker. Void drew his energy sword and sliced the DeathStalker's tail off, freeing the crane.

"Void, push!" Eric commanded, Void putting all his energy on the crane, managing to move it all the way off land.

"Where's the on switch to this thing?" Ruby asked.

"It's inside. I bet there's some more Grimm in there. Jaune, Kerási, you two are with me." Gira said. The three then rushed inside. As they left, Mutant Creeps leaped from the inside, as well as Nevermores swooping, trying to snatch one of them.

"Oh brilliant. Just what we need." Eric grumbled.

"Ruby, take out the Mutants. Nora, fire at the Nevermores to slow them down. Void, scan the freighter to see if any more Grimm and in here. Everyone else, kill any Grimm in sight." Jaune commanded, everyone playing their parts. Ruby managed to clear the deck of all Mutant Creeps, Nora's grenades caused the Nevermores to slow down, and everyone else fired on the Nevermores, taking out one within a few moments.

"Scan complete. No Grimm detected." Void said.

"Good. Once we kill the other two Nevermores, we're free and clear." Eric said. Within three minutes, the last Nevermore was killed and the freighter was activated, moving away from shore.

"Alright, I think it's safe to say we're safe." Vasha sighed.

"Let's check out what's on this thing." Ruby said, excited to see the weapons. They went inside the cargo bay to see rows of crates, some with the Schnee symbol, others silver and black. They opened one to see numerous smaller crates full of Dust.

"Wow. Well, ammo is no longer a concern." Kerási said.

"There's more in here!" Vasha said, showing another container full of Dust.

"Holy Dust! Look at this!" Jaune exclaimed, showing them a container full of Atlas armor suits. One even had a prototype Paladin.

"Oh my God! This is amazing!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Now we have some real armor. Though I don't exactly like Atlas, I do love their stuff." Eric said.

"Yeah, no kidding! We got a Paladin now, these things aren't exactly cheap!" Jaune said.

"Jackpot! I found the weapons!" Ruby exclaimed, showing a container with weapons half of which they have never seen. "No way! An Atlas Military Grade KSG! I've always wanted one of these!" Ruby squealed, hugging the shotgun like it was a teddy bear.

"Alright, armor up, get what you need, and get ready for the next destination.

"Jaune, I'd suggest you take at least a pistol. A sword and shield is a legitimate weapon choice, but sometimes a ranged weapon is more useful." Pyrrha said.

"Uhh... I've actually never used a gun before." Jaune said nervously.

"We got a long time before we reach Atlas, we can teach you the basics." Ruby said, putting a strap on her new KSG and putting it on her back.

"Well, if you insist." Jaune said, taking a Military Grade Colt.

"Oh, not that one. That'll only tick off the Grimm. Here, this one is more useful." Ruby said, giving Jaune a Schnee Company made Magnum.

"Huh. I kinda like it." Jaune said.

"And here's a holster, some ammo, and a tactical flashlight." Ruby said, giving Jaune all those items.

"Uh, thanks." Jaune said, putting on the holster and putting on the tactical flashlight onto his Magnum.

"And here. You should replace your current armor with this. It should prove more effective." Pyrrha said, giving Jaune some Atlas armor.

"Hey, Eric! You might wanna see this!" Ren called out. They all came to see a container with a metal body.

"It looks like Penny." Ruby said.

"Indeed. I believe this is a prototype of Penny." Ren said.

"A perfect form for Kieta." Eric said.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Plug me in." Kieta said. Eric pressed some buttons and a USB cable came out of the machine. "Use that to upload me into the mainframe."

"Alright." Eric said, inserting the cable into the right side of his head, the K13T4 program being uploaded into the machine. "Someone get Gira down here so he can insert Kieta's brain into the machine." Eric said. Ruby then ran off to get Gira.

"Program download now at 5%. Awaiting confirmation of subject." The computer said.

"Subject? What do they-" Eric said, then it hit him. "So that's why they abandoned this one."

"Why?" Jaune asked.

"Because in order for this prototype to work, it needs the mind of a human." Eric said.

"So why did they cancel it?" Pyrrha asked.

"Because then it would have led to a mass production. The whole world would have been made of people made of Atlas tech. It would have been the, so to speak, Ultron Upbringing." Eric said.

"I got Gira! He's coming right now!" Ruby said.

"Thank you!" Eric said.

"We should search the rest of the containers." Pyrrha said.

"Yeah. Come on, guys." Jaune said, everyone else leaving. Once Gira arrived, it was just him, Eric, and Kieta.

"So... This is the vessel for her." Gira said.

"Yes." Eric said.

"Then I shall insert the brain. Once the K13T4 system is uploaded, it should bring back Kieta." Gira said. He opened the head and put in the jar with Kieta's brain, the machine doing the rest.

"Subject successfully inserted. Initiating start up sequence." The computer said, the body starting to turn on. "Start up complete. Subject responding normally. Reboot will begin after download is complete."

"And now we play the waiting game." Eric sighed, sitting back.

"We may have to restrain her once she is online." Gira said.

"I know that. Hopefully, this works." Eric said.

"Download halfway complete." The computer said.

"Are you nervous? This may end up failing. The rules of nature may reject Kieta's resurrection." Gira said.

"I know. If that is how the gears of fate turn, so be it." Eric said. He could feel his heart racing, his mind uneasy. He might be able to finally bring back Kieta, but may also lose her for good.

"Download at seventy-five percent. Estimated time remaining at two minutes." The computer said.

"Wait. Just in case this fails, insert the K13T4 into the ship's mainframe." Eric said.

"As you wish. This action will delay the process up to one hour." The computer said.

"Very well." Eric said.

"You realize that if this does succeed, there's the possibility that Kieta may forget everything. Her brain was in a serious condition, so she may well forget who you are." Gira said.

"I don't care. As long as she lives, I'll risk everything." Eric said.

"AI download complete. DNA samples required." The computer said.

"Right, nearly forgot." Gira said, taking out the blood samples. "This should serve as a sample." He then inserted the samples, the machine taking them.

"Blood samples acquired. Testing for validity." The computer said. "Test successful. DNA sufficient. Beginning replication process."

"Well, now we just have to wait for her to awaken." Eric said, removing the USB from his head.

"We can pass the time by helping the others search the containers." Gira said.

"Yeah, never know what kind of useful stuff Atlas stowed on here." Eric said.

"I will continue running tests. I shall inform you of any changes." The computer said.

"Well, no time like the present." Eric said, the two heading off.

"Hey, you're back. Did things go okay?" Ruby asked.

"So far. The system is getting the form ready, so we have some time." Eric said.

"Cool. Here, I found this. Thought you might like it." Ruby said, tossing a jacket similar to Eric's old one.

"Thanks." Eric said, putting it on.

"Also, there's some parts and stuff in that container that seem pretty useful." Ruby said, pointing to an open container. Eric looked in to see a whole ton of parts, some parts Eric would kill to get.

"These are exactly what I need to finish Void's flight system!" Eric said, taking a handful of parts.

"We also found a mess hall. Papyrus is excited about that." Jaune said.

"Anything else of importance?" Gira asked.

"Yeah, we found some more weapons, some fuel cells, and a few containers with some clothing." Ren said.

"And who's at the helm?" Gira asked.

"Vasha and Kerási. We also found some beds for us and a shower." Ruby said.

"Well, things seem to be turning in our favor. How many more crates are there?" Eric asked.

"Just a few more. Seems to just be some Dust and armor." Jaune said.

"Well, worst case scenario we crash or Nora eats all the food." Eric said.

"Yeah, that or Atlas thinking us as White Fang and shooting us on the spot." Gira said.

"Rays of sunshine, you two are." Ruby said, everyone chuckling.

"By the way, how's the-" Jaune said, being cut off by the speakers.

"Alert: system error. Subject loose." The computer said.

"Wait what?!" Eric exclaimed, running back to Kieta. When he got there, she was nowhere to be seen. "Oh hell."

"How did she get loose?" Gira said.

"Alert: subject detected. Subject is currently on the deck." The computer said. Eric then looked up to see a hole in the ceiling.

"We have to go after her." Eric said, leaping up to the deck. Up there, he saw Kieta, alive. She looked at him with eyes full of terror. "Kieta, it's me! There's no need to be afraid."

"W-w-who are you?" Kieta asked frightened.

"Kieta, it's me! Eric!" Eric said.

"I... I don't know who you are. How do you know my name?" Kieta said.

"You're my sister." Eric said.

"I-I don't have a brother. I... I... I... Oh God, I'm so confused." Kieta said, her voice full of sorrow and terror.

"Hey, it's alright. I'm not going to hurt you. I'll make sure nothing hurts you." Eric said, embracing his sister.

"I-is it true? That you are my brother?" Kieta asked.

"Yes. We are the last of the Aeild family." Eric said.

"L-last?! You mean we're the last in the world?" Kieta exclaimed.

"Hey, it's alright. We're not the last humans in the world." Eric said.

"Oh God, I'm so confused and scared." Kieta cried.

"I know. What do you remember?" Eric asked.

"I only know my name. Nothing else." Kieta said.

'Gira was right. The Kieta I knew is...' Eric thought, letting out a single tear.

"B-but... We're safe, right? No one here is going to hurt me?" Kieta asked.

"Yes. No one will hurt you here. You're safe." Eric said.

"You sound like you know me. Why don't I remember you?" Kieta asked.

"Because after you died, your memories must have faded." Eric said.

"D-died?! How could I have died? I'm alive right now!" Kieta exclaimed.

"We revived you using the form you have right now. It's because of this that you are alive right now." Eric said.

"I don't understand. Why- how- oh God, I'm so scared." Kieta said, crying into Eric's shoulder. Eric wrapped his arms around her to comfort her.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for bringing you this pain, but I didn't have a choice." Eric said.

"I just... want to... understand." Kieta sobbed.

'The K13T4 AI must not have fully been installed. That's why she doesn't remember anything. But... if she was told everything now, she would surely go insane.' Eric thought. "I promise you everything will be explained, but right now, let's return to the others. I promise you none of them will harm you."

"O-okay." Kieta said, wiping the tears off her face. The twins then went back under the ship to show everyone that Kieta was alive and well again.

A/N

Wow. That got emotional quick. I almost cried. Uh, anyway, thank you all for reading! For last chapter's references, here they are! Reference 1 was to Code Geass, Reference 2 was to Jurassic World. Those were correctly answered by Boom-Ducks yet again. Now then, I will be able to post more chapters as of now. So be sure to check in frequently for any new updates! With that, till next chapter!


	39. Chapter 39: Three Days of Rest

Chapter 39: Three Days of Rest

"OH MY GOD, THIS IS A DISASTER!" Papyrus exclaimed, everyone rushing to the mess hall where he was.

"What? What's the emergency?" Ruby asked.

"THERE'S NO NOODLES! THEY ONLY HAVE SPICES AND BREAD!" Papyrus cried.

"Uh, yeah, those go for a good amount to some kingdoms." Ren said.

"CURSE YOU ATLAS! YOU ARE TRYING TO RUIN MY AMAZING COOKING STREAK I HAVE!" Papyrus yelled.

"Papyrus, calm down, it's not that big of a deal. Can't you just, I dunno, make sandwiches with the bread?" Pyrrha asked.

"I... You know what, you got a good point. I will not let this overcome me! Just you watch, Atlas! I, the great Papyrus, will triumph over your fiendishly laid out trap!" Papyrus said.

"That's more like it." Sans said.

"I got you're happy Sans. The only good spice they have on board is mostly ketchup." Papyrus grumbled, holding up a bottle of ketchup.

"Thanks bro." Sans said, snatching the bottle from Papyrus's hand and drinking from it.

"That cannot be healthy." Ren said.

"I've seen worse." Jaune said.

"Attention crew, changing trajectory. Brace for turn." The computer said, everyone holding onto something. The ship then turned 180 degrees, tossing everyone to the right side of the room. They soon recovered from the impact, the floor leveling out.

"Well that was unpleasant." Pyrrha said.

"Let's try not to do that again." Ruby said.

"Agreed. Well, how long is the ride gonna be?" Papyrus asked.

"About three or four days." Nora said.

"Oh God kill me." Papyrus groaned.

"I'm sure with three to four days worth of puns from Sans will do the job." Ruby said.

"Hey, they aren't that bad. I got a whole book chalked full of them." Sans said, pulling out his notebook full of puns.

"Oh god, we are screwed." Jaune said.

"Well, at least things won't be boring on the way. Silver linings, right?" Pyrrha said.

"The only thing is it'll be agony instead." Papyrus said.

"If you want a break from the puns, they have a training room in the lower decks." Ren said.

"Oh good. At least we'll be fit for battle when we arrive." Pyrrha said.

"At least we have that, along with an arsenal of weapons, armor, and gadgets for us to use." Jaune said.

"That too." Pyrrha said.

"If I were to put it simply, we're lucky." Gira said.

"You know what, you're right. What are the odds of us finding a ship to take us to Atlas, let alone have all this stuff lying here untouched?" Ren said.

"It's almost as if we're being set up." Gira said.

"Or just a lucky break?" Ruby said.

"No. It's too lucky for that. I... I should tell you all something I should have said long ago. The Shadow King you all met back at Forunichi was a force in combination with one of many dark forces. He is known as the antithesis of good, Iserlan. Iserlan was once a king of old, ruler of Vale once upon a time. Perhaps you know of this tale?" Gira said.

"Oh! I remember this! Taiyang used to read this one to me all the time! It's about the fallen king of Vale. Iserlan was once a great King, who made expansions to the kingdom and made it into the gleaming kingdom it is today. But something happened. He became jealous and fearful of the monsters' powers, and he declared war on them. He had his greatest Dust users seal them all deep within the mountain, which later came to be known as Mt. Ebott. After that, he became endured by evil, and almost caused a World War, but was slain before he could declare war. But his spirit remained. They then devised a plan, to seal four ancient swords into the mountains to seal the evil King. Ever since, Remnant became peaceful." Ruby explained.

"Until now. Tell me, do you remember the names of those swords?" Gira asked.

"Uh, yeah. One was Excalibur, the holy sword forged in the same mountain Smaug was sealed in. Another was the Grimm Rapier, a sword known and feared by all Grimm. Then the Stratoblade, a sword able to control the winds themselves. Then... I can't remember the last one." Ruby said.

"The Aster Sword. The blade wielded by Eric's ancestors to cast Iserlan's spirit into Mt. Ebott. It is known to be able to cast out all evil, no matter it's strength." Gira said.

"Wait, if it is now on this ship, then that means we need to put it back in Mt. Ebott, right?" Pyrrha said.

"Got it in one. Yes, but not in its current shape. The Shadow King doesn't remember, but that is not the true form of the Aster Sword. It's true form is much longer, and I do not recall the hilt being that color. I believe it's power was absorbed by the Shadow King over the years. That is why it is now here." Gira said.

"So we need to retrieve it's true power." Eric said.

"Precisely. By the way, did you manage to get her?" Gira asked.

"Yeah, but... hold on." Eric said, going back outside.

"W-will they really not hurt me?" Kieta asked.

"Of course not. You may not remember it, but they all care for you. They are all your friend." Eric said.

"Okay. If you say so." Kieta said nervously. The two then walked back in, Kieta very nervous.

"Hey, Kieta's back!" Papyrus cheered.

"Not exactly." Eric said.

"What do you mean 'not exactly'?" Gira asked.

"Yes, this is Kieta, but... she's lost her memory." Eric said.

"That's impossible. The K13T4 AI should have gone inside of her." Gira said.

"Seems not. Now, the Kieta you all knew is gone. Though she stands before you now, she knows none of you." Eric said.

"Oh no. Maybe... Maybe she'll regain her memories soon!" Pyrrha said.

"Maybe, but don't put your hopes on it. The damage to her brain may have wiped her memory clean, so we really cannot say what happens now." Eric said.

"We can only see what the future will bring, right?" Ruby said.

"Yeah. Right." Eric said.

"For now, let's discuss the problem at hand. Iserlan is only one of the Order of Shadows. Cinder is also associated with them, but not as powerful as the head of the Order, by whom she goes by Salem, known to some as the Empress of Evil. She has devoted her life to the fall of humanity." Gira said.

"That doesn't sound good." Sans said.

"And that's just the head of the snake. There are many other servants of evil that will die to protect Salem. Cinder is one of her closest subordinates, so I doubt she'll let us in easily. I cannot say who else we will see there, but I doubt it'll be pleasant." Gira said.

"Alright, so task list: we awaken a dragon capable of leveling an entire kingdom to kill an invincible Grimm, find an order that will die to protect one of the most powerful people on Remnant, take that person out, put back four ancient swords with unlimited power, but first return that power to the Aster Sword, and restore peace to Remnant. Well, never has the term easier said than done been more true." Jaune said.

"To sum it up, yes. We may lose some people in this journey, we may gain some others. I can only guess what horrors we will encounter in Atlas, but one ally I know we will meet." Gira said.

"The more hands we can get, the better." Ren said.

"Attention crew, time of voyage confirmed. Time of voyage is estimated at exactly three and a half days." The computer said.

"Well, now we know how long we have to wait. I suggest some keep searching the ship, see if there's any more supplies that can help us, and everyone else keep rest, and if you like, train a bit. We have this grace period, we may as well make the best of it." Gira said.

[Meanwhile...]

Yang sat on a stump outside her house, looking at her new arm. She knew inside she should be thankful for knowing a mechanic in cybernetics, but she somehow knew she wasn't done with a fight.

"Why? Why am I just not..." Yang said, sighing.

"I may know why." Yang heard, turning to see a face that made her jump from depression to anger.

"You..!" Yang snarled at Flowey.

"Now, I know you're mad, but-" Flowey said, just avoiding a deadly punch from Yang. "Woah! Calm down!"

"Oh, I'll calm down! Just as soon as I unroot you and rip your smug face from your body!" Yang yelled, continually punching at Flowey.

"Please! I'm trying to warn you of something!" Flowey exclaimed, finally calming Yang down.

"Fine. Five minutes." Yang said.

"Thank you. First, your friends are in danger. They are going to awaken Smaug, the greatest of all terrors of humanity." Flowey said.

"And why should I believe you?" Yang asked.

"Because a piece of Asriel stayed with me. I only want to help. Please, just think about it." Flowey said, going back underground, Yang smirking.

"He still had four minutes." Yang said.

"Hey, who were you talking to?" Alphys asked.

"No one, just..." Yang said, then deciding what to do. "Oh, who am I kidding? I'm going after them."

"You mean the others, right? Then I'm coming with you." Alphys said.

"It's for Undyne, right? You want to avenge her." Yang said.

"Yeah. I want the White Fang to suffer for what they took from me- I mean all of us." Alphys said, blushing slightly from her correction.

"Hey, you loved her and she loved you. There's nothing wrong with that. Let's get ready for the journey." Yang said, the two about to go back inside.

"No need. I got your stuff ready." A female voice said.

"You finally come back, huh? Just in time." Yang said, turning to see a familiar Faunus.

"I was hoping you wouldn't leave without me. Here." Blake said, tossing the two their weapons, as well as some changes of clothes. "Get changed and meet me back here. We'll set out together."

"Blake... Thanks." Yang said, the two heading back inside to get changed. Yang changed into long black pants and a t-shirt with her emblem and a long brown leather coat with golden trims. Alphys wore a yellow shirt and white pants under her lab coat.

"Alright, let's go." Blake said, the three girls heading out to avenge their friend, not knowing that this would be their greatest trial yet.

[the next day, the Atlas freighter]

Papyrus was in the lower decks, hitting a punching bag continuously and showing no signs of stopping. Soon, though, he rested, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"Phew. Undyne sure was strict with her training regiments now that I look back at it." Papyrus sighed, taking a drink of water. He wasn't in his usual attire now, but now was in his 'training suit'. It was basically the same attire he wore on his date with Ruby, minus the hat.

"Here, though you might need a little bite." Ruby said, giving Papyrus a sandwich.

"Thanks, human!" Papyrus said, taking the sandwich.

"Kinda crazy, isn't it? Everything going on right now. It's almost like those fairy tales." Ruby said.

"You sure are all about those stories, huh?" Papyrus said, taking a bite out of the sandwich.

"That's pretty much why I wanted to be a huntress in the first place. I want to be just like those heroes." Ruby said.

"Well, we're returning an entire ship to Atlas, so frankly, they ought to welcome us." Papyrus said.

"I hope. I haven't been hearing good news about Atlas ever since the incident in Mistral City. I hear that they've closed off the city to prevent the White Fang from getting in." Ruby said.

"Then we'll break in!" Papyrus said.

"And risk getting shot?" Ruby said.

"Never mind!" Papyrus quickly said, Ruby chuckling. They sat there for a while until Jaune walked in.

"Oh hey guys. Just here to get a little muscle, you know." Jaune said.

"Welcome to the party, human!" Papyrus said.

"Uh, okay." Jaune said, heading to the barbells.

"Attention crew, storm inbound. Storm length estimated at ten hours." The computer said.

"Let's hope we don't capsize." Ruby said.

[that night]

The storm still raged on, lightning illuminating the cabin rooms. Waves crashed into the side of the ship, each rocking seeming to be more threatening of capsizing. Though, everyone was asleep instead of the skeleton brothers.

"Hey Sans. You still up?" Papyrus asked.

"Yup. Are you?" Sans asked.

"Of course I am. I... I'm just kinda scared." Papyrus said.

"Of what? The storm?" Sans asked.

"No, not the storm. Just... what we're doing. We could awaken Smaug and end up dying for a fruitless cause. What would happen then?" Papyrus said.

"You make a good point. But it's better than Kemuri having Vale all to himself, right? Besides, we're heroes, right?" Sans said.

"Heroes... are we, though? Sure, we saved Mistral from falling, but we couldn't save Vale." Papyrus sighed.

"We saved one kingdom, we can take back another, right?" Sans said.

"Yeah, I... I guess you're right." Papyrus said, yawning. "I'm gonna go to sleep. Good night, bro."

"Night, bro." Sans said, waiting for Papyrus to start snoring. "So, what to you think, Gaster?" Sans asked. Usually, he would hear something, but this time, he heard nothing. "Hey, bud, you there?" Sans asked. Nothing. "Hm. Must be sleeping. Well, might as well do the same. Night, Gaster."

[Meanwhile, ?]

"My lady, plans are proceeding as predicted." A hooded man said.

"Good. And what about Cinder?" Salem asked.

"She has ordered the White Fang to hold all initiatives until Smaug has awakened." The man said.

"Smart girl. Tell her to make any necessary preparations. Atlas will surely fall from this. Then, Vacuo is all that stands." Salem said.

"I'm afraid you are wrong, my lady. Mistral was protected from fall. Indominus was defeated." The man said.

"Hmph. A minor bump in the road. Smaug will happily clean that mess up too. His hatred for humanity may even rival mine. Those fools will do my work for me." Salem said, laughing.

"And what of..." The man asked.

"Oh, keep him here. We may use him as bait." Salem said.

"Yes, my lady." The man said, leaving. Later, Iserlan came into her chambers.

"Salem, shall I unfreeze Kemuri? We have the chance now." Iserlan said.

"Not now. Wait for when they awaken Smaug." Salem said.

"But Kemuri could do the job for them." Iserlan said.

"We need not worry about Kemuri for now. For now, take a rest. You have done so much since you have arrived, it's the least you deserve." Salem said.

"As you wish, m'lady." Iserlan said, bowing and leaving.

"Heh. Such power. Such authority. Is this what humans crave so much? It's no wonder." Salem mused.

[The next morning, Atlas Freighter]

"Gooooooood morning humans!" Papyrus said, everyone getting up.

"What's the ruckus about, Papyrus?" Jaune asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Breakfast is ready!" Papyrus said, rolling out a cart of surprisingly well made sandwiches. If his shouting didn't wake up anyone, the smell sure did.

"Wow, they smell delicious." Pyrrha said.

"Bon appetite!" Papyrus said, letting everyone take one. To their surprise, it was delicious.

"Wow, Papyrus! This may be your best work yet!" Ruby said.

"Thank you, dear friends! It's the least I can do for such wonderful friends!" Papyrus said.

"You know, the world may be ending now, but it's actually kinda nice to just be here and relax, as if the troubles in the world don't exist at all." Ren said.

"You said it. After all we've been through to get here, we deserved this." Ruby said. And as she sat around with her friends, she felt that she could truly and surely rely on them. She knew she would save them, and they would save her as well. She knew this time of rest wouldn't last forever, but when they got this kind of chance, Ruby cherished it as much as she could. And she was sure they also did.

"Heh, you know what would go good with this? Toriel's Cinnamon Butterscotch Pie." Kerási said, everyone salivating at the thought.

"Ooh, that would be something to taste." Jaune said.

"Maybe once we save the world we can try that." Vasha said.

"I'll make sure to hone my skills in sandwich and spaghetti making. Oh! That gives me an idea! Spaghetti Sandwiches!" Papyrus said.

"Whatever floats your boat." Ren chuckled.

As the day continued, Ruby helped wherever needed help on the ship, until finally she caught sight of land. "Land! I see land!" Ruby exclaimed, everyone running up to see the land, more clear than before.

"That's Atlas, for sure. We actually made it." Kerási said.

"Remember, we still have a long ways to go. I know of someone outside Atlas's detection range that'll help us to Smaug's den. His name is Freon, and he is one of my, er, apprentices." Gira said.

"Apprentice? You mean you were training people outside of Atlas's knowledge?" Eric asked.

"Yup. Figured I may as well hone my skills as well as share it with other abandoned children." Gira said.

"Wait, so this Freon is a kid?" Vasha asked.

"Maybe. It was five years since I last saw him. You'll know him when you see him." Gira said.

"Alright. Everyone, let's get ready for the battles we have ahead. Grimm are most likely swarming the borders, so we'll-" Ruby said.

"No need to take precautions. Remember you have me. I can force the Grimm to let us pass." Gira said.

"Right. Still, we should get ready. The road is going to be long and dangerous. The mountain is on the other side of Atlas, right?" Ruby said.

"Correct. The Mountain of Desolation is what it is referred to. Atlas moved after an... incident with Smaug." Gira said.

"What incident?" Ruby asked.

"That would be Smaug's Fury. It is an old tale of Atlas, and not a good one. After the ancient Grimm were cast into the mountains, Smaug took residence in Atlas, since the climate seemed to be to his liking. The people of Atlas thanked Smaug with a castle built into the furthest mountain. Smaug was grateful for the offering, but... it was a trap. Once Smaug entered, all kinds of traps activated. Arrows, swords, guns, all kinds of weapons fired and swung, clashing against the dragon's armor. Then, electricity erupted and drained Smaug of his energy. As they thought their prey was slain, Smaug rose again, and destroyed all the traps. He then blocked off the exits and slew everyone in the mountain. After that... he went for the kingdom. However, his energy was not fully restored, and forced him back into the mountain. If it weren't for that, Atlas would never have recovered." Gira said.

"Why did they attack Smaug in the first place?" Kerási asked.

"They feared his power, and wanted to kill him before he killed them. Also, they were envious of his power, and they knew if they had him killed, they would have armor that could never be penetrated, swords that would never blunt. They would have never had to worry about Grimm again. But greed always has its repercussions." Gira said.

"I wouldn't put it past him if he has such hatred against humanity. The acts of Atlas that day are unforgivable." Vasha said.

"Yeah, I think the White Fang has some serious competition." Sans said.

"Alright. Take whatever you need, pack as much food as you can, and get back up here in an hour. We need to be prepared for the worst." Eric said. They then went into the ship, getting all they needed for the journey ahead.

A/N

Boy, that took more attempts at writing than it should have. Thank you all for reading (and furthermore dealing with my bs). So anyway, I'm kinda setting some events up, some you can probably already predict. Yeeeah, may have made that one a bit too clear. Anyway, leave a review of what you thought, or PM me for some ideas you think would change the story for the better. With that, this is Erecles, signing off.

P.S.: I redid chapter 37 for obvious mistakes.

P.P.S.: Happy Halloween (for those that had a happy one).


	40. Chapter 40: Journey Through Desolation

A/N

Wow. Forty chapters already. I am... wow. Anyway, enjoy!

Chapter 40: Journey Through Desolation

As the group reached the icy shore of Atlas, they went through the ice that surrounded the shore, so thick it would've demolished any normal ship. Fortunately, this ship was made to go through this kind of environment. (Also, by this point, everyone is in their Volume 4 costumes. Pyrrha is in full body armor now.)

"Land ho!" Ruby exclaimed as they reached the shore. "Always wanted to do that."

"Here we are. Atlas. Eric, get Void to move the crane to shore." Gira said.

"Right." Eric said. He summoned Void and made him move the crane to shore. Everyone carefully navigated across the crane and onto land. Instantly, they were glad they wore warm clothes. The freezing wind blew across their face, snow continually falling.

"Yup. Weiss sure grew up in her element." Sans joked, everyone chuckling.

"So where is this Freon kid?" Vasha asked.

"Follow me." Gira said, navigating everyone through the eternal winter forest. It seemed to take forever, but they soon reached a clearing. In the center was a statue of a Beowolf half covered in snow.

"Where are we?" Ruby asked.

"Where Freon should be." Gira said. They approached the statue, but as they did, Beowolves began surrounding them.

"It's a trap! Everyone, get ready to fight!" Eric said, reaching for the Aster Sword, but Gira stopped him.

"Wait. I sense him." Gira said. Then, they heard shouting. It wasn't in English, however. It sounded to be a completely different language. Then, a boy appeared, cloaked in a Beowolf fur coat. He shouted at the Beowolves in the language, and though the group had no idea what he was saying, the Grimm seemed to understand. They then, to everyone's surprise, went back into the forest, vanishing from sight.

"Gira. It's been a while." The boy said, this time in English.

"Indeed it has. I see you have taken my teachings well." Gira said.

"Who are these people you've brought with you?" The boy asked.

"Oh, pardon my manners. Everyone, this is Freon, my closest apprentice. Freon, this is Ruby, Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren, Nora, Papyrus, Sans, Eric, Kerási, and Vasha." Gira introduced, pointing to each person perspectively.

"It is a pleasure to meet you all." Freon said.

"And it's a pleasure to meet you too." Pyrrha said.

"You can talk to Grimm? Awwwesoooome." Ruby said.

"More or less. They rarely speak in a decipherable tongue, but they can be reasoned with if you use the right words." Freon said.

"I taught Freon seven years ago to communicate to Grimm. Eventually, they took him like a son." Gira said.

"Well a friend of our friend is a friend of ours." Ren said.

"What brings you this way, anyway? I can sense you have come from afar." Freon said.

"We came from Vale, which has now fallen, to awaken Smaug to reclaim it." Eric said.

"You dare to awaken such a monster? Do you not know what possible threat to life that'll bring? Not that just of humans, but monsters and Faunus?" Freon said.

"We know. But we have no other choice. If we end up unleashing the wrath of Smaug on the world, then we will take whatever punishment awaits us. But Smaug is our best chance at slaying Kemuri." Vasha said.

"Hmph. Very well. If that is what your ambitions are, then I will help in any way I can." Freon said, speaking in the Grimm tongue. Multiple Beowolves then came out and hunched over, as if to offer a ride. "These Beowolves will provide safe and quick passage through the Eternal Winter Forest. But know this: do not, under any circumstance, unsheathe your weapon. They will take it as a sign of aggression and attack you. If you should remain passive, I guarantee you safe passage."

"Woah. We get to RIDE on Beowolves? Best. Day. Ever." Ruby said.

"Now get going. I sense aggressors are not far behind." Freon said, leaving the group with that.

"Alright, everybody! Let's get to that mountain!" Papyrus said, everyone mounting a Beowolf and taking off. To their surprise, they rode with grace and comfort, despite them bring creatures of darkness. Yet here they were, riding horseback on their enemies.

"If someone told me a month ago I'd be riding on the back of a Beowolf through a forest, I would not have believed them." Ruby said.

"This! Is! AWESOME! YEEEEEEHAAAAAW!" Nora exclaimed, everyone telling she was having the time of her life.

"Urg. Murph. Getting... nauseous." Jaune said, holding back vomit. He was unlucky enough to have gotten the Beowolf that wasn't as careful as everyone else's.

"Watch the road. We may have some crevices ahead." Gira said, and he was correct. The Beowolves leaped over a giant crevice in the road, leading down for miles.

"Woah! That was close." Eric said.

"Heads up, we're exiting the forest now!" Gira said as they charged through the forest. It then led to a flatland covered in sheets of snow, along with a mountain range as far as the eye could see. "We're headed to Blizzard Range. There's an old Atlas road through there to get to the other side. After that, the Mountain of Desolation isn't far." Gira said.

"This seems too easy." Eric said. Soon, the Beowolves came to a halt. Gira's Beowolf said something to him, in the same tongue Freon talked in.

"They say this is as far as they'll take us. We're on our own from here on." Gira said.

"Aww, over already?" Nora wined. But no one else argued. Mainly due to them not wanting to get eaten. They dismounted, Nora saying one last goodbye to her Beowolf as they ran back to the forest. Nora could swear she saw her Beowolf look back at her.

"Alright, now we need to get past Blizzard Range. Gira, you know where the pass is?" Eric asked.

"Of course. Follow me." Gira said. They went for the mountains, then East of the base. They kept on walking until they found an old tunnel through the mountain. "Here. This should provide a fairly safe passage through the mountains."

"Are you sure? It seems... a little precarious." Jaune said.

"No need to be afraid. I have taken this path many times over the past few years." Gira said.

"It seems stable enough. Let's go." Eric said, the group moving through the tunnels.

[Meanwhile, Vale docks]

"Ugh, what's taking so long?" Yang sighed, leaning on a tree.

"I can see them coming in the distance now. It's not long before they land." Blake said, pointing to a normal sized boat heading for them.

"That's going to take us to Mistral?" Alphys asked.

"It should, as long as he's there." Blake said. They were confused as to what Blake was referring to until the ship docked. Then, they let the girls on, only to let them see an old friend.

"Hey, there they are! Man, you just missed an awesome fight at Mistral." Sun said.

"Sun! Hey. Uh, what fight are you talking about?" Yang asked.

"Oh, it was awesome! We were defending the city against waves of Grimm, then they stopped coming. Then, this huge Grimm erupted from the land. I'm talking HUGE, like, mountain height! But with the help of some friends, we defeated it! I mean, yeah, we lost a few people, but-" Sun said, passing that last statement with a hint of sorrow, but Alphys cut him off.

"You say friends, do you mean Ruby and the others?" Alphys asked.

"Oh, yeah. They passed through the city the next day. Said they had important business to take care of." Sun said.

"Where would they be headed? Vacuo? Maybe they went back to Vale?" Blake pondered.

"I know where they're going. Atlas. To awaken the ancient dragon that slew Kemuri a millennia ago. But I have a feeling they'll only walk to their deaths." Yang said.

"Alright, I'll tell the big guy to set course to Atlas." Sun said, heading up to the command. It took a while, but the ship finally got moving again.

"When'll we be reaching Atlas?" Alphys asked.

"In about five days. It's a real long ways away. Maybe three if we go through a certain channel." Sun said.

"We'd better make the best of our time." Yang said. "May as well get my arm more calibrated for battle."

[Many hours later, past Blizzard Range, Atlas]

"Ah, finally! Fresh air!" Jaune said as they reached the end of the passage. Past the frozen trees and winter tundra, which the locals referred to as Frostbite Plains, they could see a mountain on the edge of Atlas, behind it a vast sea.

"Everyone see that mountain? That's our destination. That's where Smaug awaits. But be warned, it's a much vaster trek than it looks. At least four days if we go without any rest and, if we're lucky, no Grimm attacks." Gira said.

"So about a week or two?" Ruby implied.

"Correct. There are a few settlements along the way where we can rest. You can see them across Frostbite Plains, in the forest known as Snowshroud Forest. Hope you all have enough warm clothing." Gira said.

"Frostbite Plains doesn't seem that long compared to what we've traveled. Then again, I only have one eye." Kerási said.

"The first settlement is New Nevah. It was the first attempted settlement Atlas attempted." Gira said.

"You know the most about this place. Lead the way." Ren said. They then went to Snowshroud Forest.

[A few more hours later, New Nevah]

Once they arrived in New Nevah, they found it being overrun with Grimm, but people still were scattering around, fighting the Grimm as best they could. The group decided to help, Jaune decapitating a Beowolf straight away. Gira vanished and reappeared to slay two Ursi while Kerási stabbed a Borbatusk in the heart, putting Cheli Namu together to make her double sided Naginata. She spun it around and slew four Creeps. Pyrrha threw her shield, which bashed a Beowolf in the head, allowing her to slice it in half. She retrieved her shield and defended a woman and her child from an Alpha Beowolf, which she decapitated. Ruby sniped a Creep that nearly got Pyrrha while Papyrus used his bones to create a wall between a Taijitu and a group of people. Sans then summoned Gaster Blaster to kill the Taijitu. Meanwhile, Eric and Gira worked together to kill a Beringle, which are those gorilla Grimm.

Within a matter of minutes, the group had cleared the city of Grimm. The people of the town praised them and thanked them. They also gave them some gifts of affection to show their thanks. The woman Pyrrha saved offered her a golden pin.

"You really don't have to." Pyrrha said humbly.

"Please, I insist. It's the least I can do for you. You did protect me and my child." The woman said.

"If you insist." Pyrrha said, taking the kind gift. She replaced it with her current pin. Strangely, it seemed to glow with her aura. For Papyrus and Sans, they were both held in high esteem. Papyrus was in heaven.

"Yes, yes, no need to thank me so much. It's the least I could do for such wonderful humans!" Papyrus said.

"Don't thank me, I just make the explodey stuff." Sans said.

"Wait, I remember you." A man said to Gira. "You're project G1R4, the rouge intelligence."

"Yes, but I have no desire to harm you, I assure." Gira said.

"And you. You're project 3R1C. Wait. Your arm, it looks... different." The man said.

"Wait, how do you know me?" Eric asked.

"I am one of the last scientists that worked on you. Hmm... you don't seem to have the antigravity module anymore. Come, I know of how to repay you." The man said. The two looked at each other and shrugged, following the man. "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I am Professor Narajama. I was the head scientist on your main functions. I'm sure I can recreate the antigravity module in no time. Give me about three minutes."

"Narajama... Narajama... Why does that name remind me of something?" Gira said to himself.

"You know, the lab you sent up, thanks to Adam, it was actually the first settlement of Atlas, heck, the first settlement after the four kingdoms were created. It was called Nevah, but later named Old Nevah once New Nevah was created." Narajama said.

"That's cool and all, but why are you helping us?" Eric asked.

"Because it'll help my research. Recently, I've been trying to find a formula for artificial gravity, you know, without the help of Remnant's natural gravitational pull. It would allow us to use spacial travel and traverse our universe. We have the resources." Narajama said.

"Space travel. One can dream." Gira said.

"Anyway, give me a few minutes. I need to redesign one of my spare modules to your antigravity code." Narajama said. He then worked on a small chip, letting the two relax. They looked to the mountain, which was barely visible now with the snow storm blowing over the Frostbite Plain. In a few minutes, Narajama was finished. "Now Eric, give me your left hand."

"Alright." Eric said, holding out his left hand. Narajama opened an access port on it and inserted the module. His arm readjusted and soon closed the access port.

"There. Your antigravity code should be back now." Narajama said. Eric held out his hand and focused. He didn't put too much pressure, just enough to lift a few pebbles. Sure enough, he made them float. He made them dance around and do loops, sometimes even spell things out in the ground. He did this sometimes when he didn't have anything else to do. "And with more advanced Atlas technology, it should be more stable than before."

"Thanks for this, Narajama." Eric said.

"Narajama... wait, now I remember! You're the one that called off project G1R4!" Gira exclaimed.

"You must understand. We tried for so many years to perfect you. But in the end, we made you too perfect. It wasn't I that called off the project, but rather Ironwood. He wanted me to shut you down and dispose you. But I couldn't let my many years of work go to waste, but I couldn't disobey Ironwood." Narajama said.

"That still doesn't wipe the fact away that you threw me out like I was some piece of trash!" Gira snarled.

"If you wish to kill me, go ahead. Now that you're reactivated, Ironwood will most likely have me shot for treason." Narajama said.

"Do not think I will have pity on you." Gira said, raising his sword to kill Narajama, but Eric stopped him.

"Gira, no! This is not what we came here for! Have you forgotten why we came out all this way? It's to save these people, not slay them! We're hunters, not murderers!" Eric exclaimed.

"But-!" Gira retaliated, but he knew Eric was right. If he killed Narajama here, it'd put a bad face on him, and most likely kill them all. Gira sighed and sheathed his sword. "Fine. Have it your way."

"We should get back to the others." Eric said, the two headed back.

[Meanwhile, the freighter]

Eric had told Kieta to stay behind until her memory returned. But every day she tried to remember something, but nothing came out of it.

"Why? Why do they all seem to know who I am? Why do I not know who they are? Why do I not know who I am?" Kieta asked herself over and over. Eventually, the answer came to her. "They said that the K13T4 system was never uploaded into me. What do they mean by it? Will it give me the answers I need?" Kieta said, heading back into the cargo bay. There, she found the console, and a beeping red button. She pressed it.

"Subject identified as [Kieta]. Now commencing upload of [K13T4] data base." The computer said, a wire going into her hand. Then, as she tried to pull back, she started to remember. Eric, Gira, her creation, the inferno, Beacon, her friends, everything. Even her own death. And then, she remembered who she was.

"I see now. I see who I am. Computer, give me supplies. This body is kinda rusty. Anything more sleek or shiny?" Kieta said.

"Commencing armor replacement." The computer said.

[The next day, New Nevah]

The group bid farewell to the people of New Nevah as they set off to the mountain.

"Where's our next stop?" Nora asked.

"It should be at a small town, about two days from here. We'll set up camp at the edge of Snowshroud Forest." Gira said.

"Sounds good. Any Grimm on the way?" Ren asked.

"Not that I can see. However, be warned that Grimm this far out are more savage and more intelligent. They also changed their fur color to white to blend in with the snow, so be warned." Gira said.

"Great. Camouflage Grimm. This day gets better and better." Jaune sighed.

"Nothing we can't handle, though! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus said.

"You sure are confident." Pyrrha chuckled.

"Confidence gets you far in war, as Undyne always told me!" Papyrus said.

"I'm sure Undyne would be proud of how far we've gotten." Ruby said.

The rest of the walk was rather silent, mainly due to them not wanting to carry that conversation any further. They knew Undyne was dead and they couldn't change that, but the mere subject made them sad. Especially Pyrrha and Ruby. Hours must have passed, and soon it was sunset.

"Sun's going down. We should make camp soon." Gira said.

"I think I see trees up ahead. We can maybe rest there." Jaune said.

"Good eyes, Jaune." Ruby said. They soon reached the outskirts of Snowshroud Forest and made camp, lighting a fire in the cold snowy air. Sometimes, Ruby could swear she saw a few Snow Drakes and some Kioras. Though, it was tough to see in the dark snowy night. They took turns keeping watch, but at one point, they had to fight a few Snow Beowolves, but nothing they couldn't handle. It was a very cold night, and probably one of the hardest to sleep in, aside from Gira, who slept in it no problem. Occasionally, Eric summoned Void to keep guard while they all got some rest.

The next morning, they got up and packed up everything, setting out to the next town. They could see it in the distance, a small village, much like Forunichi. It was covered in snow to help stay out of sight, and some people even managed to make crops in this harsh environment.

"Here we are. Welcome to Snow Fall Village, a small quaint town in the middle on nowhere. A good rest stop for adventurers like us. Come on, let's get to the tavern." Gira said. No one argued, especially in this environment. They stepped into the town tavern, which was surprisingly empty, aside from the bartender.

"Hello there adventurers. What can I do for ya?" The bartender asked.

"We're just passing by, but came here to rest." Gira said.

"Ah, if I had a nickel for every time I heard that. Yes, rooms are upstairs. They're five Lien a night for one person." The bartender said.

"Then that's..." Gira said, counting everyone. "About 55 Lien for us."

"I got us covered." Ruby said, fishing around her pockets. Meanwhile, everyone else got settled in, getting a bit of food and some drinks. However, as they ate, they heard some talk of the mountain.

"Yeah, I heard Atlas is gonna close off the mountain from everyone to prevent another disaster." A man with a Russian accent said.

"Those damn adventurers don't even think of half the consequences. It's a right good thing they're doin'." Another man with a Scottish accent said.

"They wouldn't hafta to do any of this if they'd just let Smaug be. Damn Atlas only cares about self preservation." The Russian man said.

"Hmm... This might slow our progress a bit." Gira said.

"There's a way to get past that, right?" Jaune asked.

"Of course, but it'll take more time. If I'm guessing Atlas right, it'll take us an extra day just to get past them. Without killing anyone in addition." Gira said.

"Great, just when we need to get there, Atlas finally decided to close off the mountain." Kerási sighed.

"And there's no way around them?" Ren asked.

"There is if you want to go forty miles north. Three times that distance south." Gira said.

"Great. It's like they're trying to stop us." Vasha sighed.

"Oi, are you lot talkin of goin to that mountain?" The Russian man asked.

"We have no business with the mountain. We merely are trying to get to the city beyond it." Gira lied.

"Well, if you mean Sanctuary, it's also being blocked off. Atlas says it's abandoned, but I think they're just wanting to get rid of that city." The Russian man said.

"What's wrong with Sanctuary?" Pyrrha asked.

"What, 'ave ya been livin under a rock? It's the fabled holdout of the bloody White Fang. And we hear countless Grimm have been pourin out of that rock of a town." The Scottish man said.

"That sounds like... no. No, they couldn't be there. It was nowhere near Atlas." Gira said, cursing to himself.

"Gira? What is it?" Eric asked.

"I believe Salem and her people are closer than we thought." Gira said.

"Wait, you mean they could be in Sanctuary?" Jaune asked.

"Sounds like a perfect place to kick their butts!" Papyrus said.

"Calm down, Papyrus. Even if we took them by surprise, they'd still have a legion of Grimm between them and us. And even then we'd have to take out her personal guards to get a chance to take her down, and even I couldn't take her. I challenged her to a duel many years ago, and she took me down without breaking a sweat." Gira said.

"She's that tough? Dang. Maybe we should rethink our strategy of taking her down." Papyrus said.

"We're many centuries away from ever even getting close to taking her down. We'd have to be in the best condition to have a fleeting chance." Gira said.

"I'm sure with all of us, we'll be able to." Pyrrha said.

"Strength in numbers isn't a reliable tactic. In the end, it all comes down to experience. A whole legion could be taken out by a single man if the man has enough experience." Gira said.

"So what do we do?" Ren asked.

"Yeah. Do we go after the mountain like we planned or do we go to Sanctuary to take out Salem first?" Kerási asked.

A/N

Yep, crappy cliffhangers. I can do these all day long. Anyway, thank you for reading and for all the support you've all given me throughout these long forty chapters. Anyway, time for some needy Easter eggs!

Nerd Egg 1: From what game is Narajama and New Nevah a reference to?

Nerd Egg 2: What is Snowshroud Forest referencing to?

Nerd Egg 3: What character from what book is Freon a reference to?

If you find any other references that I may have skimmed over, please leave a review or PM. With that, I'll leave you with this.

[Next chapter]

With the world crumbling, all our hopes rely on our next actions. We have two crossroads ahead of us, one leading to our possible doom, and the other leading to certain death. Tempting fate is what we have done throughout our entire lives, but what will these destinies bring? Only one way to find out.

Next chapter: Fading Hopes


	41. Chapter 41: Desolated Hopes

Chapter 41: Desolated Hopes

"We continue the course. Our plan does not change. We continue to head toward the mountain and awaken Smaug." Gira said.

"But won't they expect us to stay the course? It may be a trap." Kerási said.

"Yes. It could very well be a trap. But along the way, there are a few spots of interest that we should visit. However, Smaug is very easily angered and is very cautious. We will need someone to talk to him and convince him to aid us." Gira said.

"But who? Which one of us will be able to convince a fire breathing creature of death and destruction?" Jaune asked, just then Ruby coming back with some room keys.

"I got the keys!" Ruby said, everyone staring at her. "Uh, are we not staying the night?"

"Ruby. We have a task for you. Once we get to the mountain, we need you to talk to Smaug." Gira said.

"Uh, why me?" Ruby asked, slightly nervous.

"You were able to convince an entire race of monsters that humans weren't so bad, so repeat that same miracle and convince Smaug to save humanity." Gira said.

"He does bring up a valid point." Vasha said.

"Well, that still depends on if Ruby is willing to the task." Ren said.

"Yeah. I'll do it. If it means saving the world and all life on it, then I'll take the risk." Ruby said.

"Thank you. Now then, on another note, the Aster Sword's true power still slumbers. In order to reclaim it, we'll need to visit an old temple on the way to the mountain. Inside is a small stone called the moonlight outlet. That will restore the blade's true power." Gira said.

"Alright then. We should get some rest." Eric said. Everyone nodded and took a room key, soon getting to rest.

[that night, a few hundred miles away from Atlas]

With the full moon, or what was left of it, shone down on the vast sea, illuminating it all, since the sky was so clear. Yang sat outside, looking at the shore of Atlas now coming into view. Though, she still was uncertain about the plan. If they had already gotten to Atlas, they had a head start, and she doubted they would stop for a few snow storms.

Yang sighed. "Why is all of this happening now? Why does the world have to end now?"

"I guess Blake was right about one thing, the world won't wait for us to graduate." Alphys said.

"I mean, just think. We're only sophomores, and we're on our way to save the freaking world. How many times do you think people have been able to say that on the history of Remnant?" Yang said.

"I know what you mean. It's just... I-" Alphys said, being interrupted by a faint noise, as they looked up to see what appeared to be a rocket flying right for them, a wave behind it as it broke the sound barrier.

"That can't be good." Yang said, the object crashing into the water next to the ship, creating a huge splash.

"What the heck was that!?" Alphys exclaimed, being answered by a synthetic person rising from the water.

"What the heck are you two doing here?" The person asked.

"Uuuuuh. Atlas, right?" Yang said.

"Huh? Oh, right, new body. Well, I'm Kieta, but that's not important right now. We-" Kieta said, being cut off by Yang hugging her.

"Oh, I thought you were dead!" Yang said.

"Gah! Now I know how Ruby feels." Kieta gasped. Yang soon let her down as Kieta caught her breath. "Now then, as I was saying, you need to turn back now. The beast Smaug is about to awaken as the great prophecy foretold, and the land will be shroud in darkness and fire. Iserlan will regain his lost power, and all will tremble at his feet. You must turn back now." Kieta said.

"That's why we're here. We came to stop them from awakening Smaug." Alphys said.

"I see. Well, I doubt I can stop you, so instead I'll help you stop them. After all... Gira is not to be trusted." Kieta said. "I know a fast route to the North Peek that Gira has long forgotten about. We can take it by boat, but it'll be longer, but safer. And it's an easy way around Blizzard Range." Kieta said.

"Alright. I'll tell Sun in the morning." Alphys said.

"Good. And Yang... I'm afraid that Gira may use your sister as a pawn to awaken Smaug." Kieta said.

[the next morning, Snow Fall Inn]

"RISE AND SHINE, FELLOW HUMANS! WE GOT A FULL DAY OF ADVENTURING TO GET TO!" Papyrus shouted, which was clearly enough to wake up everyone. And not just the group.

"Jeez, Papyrus. You care to shout a little louder?" Jaune said, and instantly regretted saying it.

"Sure I can!" Papyrus said, inhaling. But Kerási smacked his mouth shut.

"He was being sarcastic. Please, do not shout any louder." Kerási said sleepily.

"Okay!" Papyrus said in a muffled manner.

"Alright, let's get some food and-" Gira said, cutting himself off when he saw a certain man. A man with crazy eyes and sat like a monkey. "Shit. Tyrian."

"Who now?" Ruby asked.

"Shh! If he sees us, he'll kill us without hesitation. Wait..." Gira said, noticing a paper in his hand. No, a wanted poster. With Ruby's face on it, and big words 'ALIVE' under it, as well as a large reward. "Son of a bitch. Salem is on to us. And she wants Ruby alive. I'm guessing Cinder is still pretty miffed about Beacon." Gira said.

"We'll defend her with our lives." Ren said.

"Are you willing to stick to that gamble? Salem's goons should not be trifled with. To challenge one in a duel to the death is like to throw your life away." Gira said.

"They're that tough?" Jaune asked.

"And Salem is as good as all of them put together, if not better." Gira said.

"If we have to get out of here unseen, I saw a back entrance. Follow me." Vasha said, everyone sneaking outside, Ruby making sure to hide her face since she didn't know who was onto them. And that would be the last time they had a good rest for a long time, and not the last meal that they skipped.

[one week later, the Atlas borders]

"We're gonna have to wait here. I don't know how long, though. We need a distraction in order to pass." Gira said.

"What if we fight our way in?" Nora suggested.

"And get half the Atlas army on our coat tail? We'd become criminals and have a price on our heads, as if Ruby's reward wasn't enough to get bounty hunters on us." Gira said.

"Okay, so we can't go guns blazing. What then?" Pyrrha said.

"We wait. Eventually, if we're lucky, a Grimm pack will come and distract the border guards." Gira said. Just as he said that, though, a sound like an explosion occurred a ways down, causing the guards to rush for the scene. "Or that could happen."

"Now! Run!" Eric yelled, everyone making a mad dash toward the border, passing undetected. But to be safe, they dashed for the trees and hid behind a large bush, seeing no guards pursuing. They took this lucky break and went on.

"What was that explosion, though?" Vasha asked.

"If I knew, I'd have told you." Gira said. "We got lucky. The mountain is now only a day's travel. Another one after we stop by the temple."

"I hope it has some food. I haven't eaten for days." Papyrus sighed.

"If you want to eat food that is decades old, be my guest." Gira said.

"I'm fine with starving." Papyrus said.

[many hours later, Ruins of Old Nevah]

They soon reached a large crater, on the other side an ancient temple with the full moon shining down on it. In fact, the moon seemed larger than before. They navigated around the crater, occasionally someone slipping and nearly falling into the crater. They soon reached the temple and observed it. It was clearly a millennia or two old just by looking at it, with the roof having multiple missing boards and holes, one large hole shining down moonlight on a pedestal in the center of the temple. They knew just from looking at it that it was the moonlight outlet.

"This is it. The moonlight outlet will charge Aster Sword with moonlight and awaken it's true form." Gira said.

"Moonlight, huh? At least we have some light with us." Eric said, unsheathing Aster Sword and plunging it into the moonlight outlet. At first, nothing happen, but then once the moon was directly above them, it charged down a ray of light, which near blinded everyone. Once the light faded, the copper and gold of the hilt was shattered on the ground, and the Aster Sword now shone bright white, the blade a silver titanium color, with the hilt now white as snow, and a large diamond in the hilt. Eric reclaimed the sword, and it's moonlight shone even brighter. However, once they looked up at the moon, it seemed even more broken.

"Just as I feared. The moon gives it's energy to recharge the Aster Sword, but it becomes more broken every time. That is what happened when the Aster Sword was first made." Gira said.

"The life energy of the moon." Eric mumbled to himself, looking at the sword.

"Come on. We shouldn't stay here any longer than we have to." Gira said. Just as he said that though, a plate on the far wall turned, showing ancient writing, but still in English thankfully.

"What in the..." Eric said, reading the tablet. "Prophecy of the Darkened World. 'Eleven warriors travel to the east, and with a nation slay an ancient beast. They head then north to the olden peak, and another ancient beast they seek. Innocent they save, Warriors they lose, and the moonlight of this temple they use. The mountain they traverse, and the dragon they awake, but fall or raise is mankind's sake. Darkness reigns, and the fallen returned, through Hades and Elysium they're turned. But when all is done and the fallen king last, two must return all to the past.'"

"It's obvious the prophecy is referring to our travels. Eleven warriors. There's eleven of us. We slew Indominus with the help of Mistral, then we went north to Atlas to awaken Smaug. We saved a good number of innocent people, and we lost quite a few at the battle for Mistral City. Then we returned the power of the Aster Sword here. The rest, I'm not quite sure about." Gira said.

"Y'know, I think he has a point. So it was foretold that we would come here. But who could have guessed all the events we went through and will go through?" Jaune said.

"I do not have an answer yet. Regardless, prophecy or not, we need to get to the mountain." Gira said.

"It's getting dark, though. Maybe we should set up camp here." Eric said.

"No, not here. We travel a ways more. When the moonlight struck down, it undoubtedly attracted Grimm." Gira said.

"He has a point. Alright, we make for the mountain in the morning." Kerási said.

"I know a fairly good spot to camp out the night." Gira said. They went a ways away from the temple and into a small cave barely visible to the naked eye. Even the others had a difficult time getting into the cave.

"At least Grimm will have a chore finding us." Nora said.

"Indeed. Let's not risk starting a fire, though. Get some rest, be ready for one last trek." Gira said.

[the next afternoon, the base of the mountain]

It had taken most of the group's energy, but they finally reached their destination, North Peak. It was exceptionally large, reaching the clouds and higher. They wouldn't be surprised if the peak went up to the atmosphere.

"Alright. We're at the mountain. Now how do we get in?" Papyrus asked.

"I'm not seeing an entrance. Maybe did Smaug close it off?" Ruby wondered.

"No, not unless Atlas was one step ahead of us." Gira said, humming to himself. "It should be just... what the hell?" Gira said, everyone looking at what he saw. And it wasn't very good. The entire entrance was completely blocked off by the top part. As far as they could see, there was no way inside through there.

"Atlas was a step ahead. Now what?" Eric said.

"Our plan remains. Just now it'll take a bit more time to initiate." Gira said.

"I sure hope that it'll all be worth it in the end." Papyrus said.

"Stay confident. I got a good feeling we'll get inside." Kerási said.

"I believe there may be another entrance that Atlas forgot about. Come." Gira said, everyone going around the mountain to the west side. There the ground became black and charred, and not a single trace of snow was found. This, however, was fortunate for them since it provided them an easier time finding the door.

"Is this it?" Jaune asked, showing a rather small door, one too small for a normal person to walk through, instead having to crawl in.

"Yes, that's it. Alright, it's still good light, so... Ruby, are you ready?" Gira said.

"You don't have to go in yet. We can wait another day, if that's what you need." Vasha said.

"No. I'm ready." Ruby said, taking a deep breath. If she was completely honest that day, she was entirely not ready. She would rather have gone back then if she had the chance, which she did. But deep down, she knew that if she didn't do this, the world would end. "I'm ready."

"If you say so. One last word of advice, do not pick anything up in there. Smaug is very fond of his vast riches, and will not let even one small piece of gold leave the mountain. And you will have to crawl through this passage." Gira said.

"Alright. Sent me in." Ruby said, her heart racing. Even without the abnormal heat, she could still feel sweat beads forming on her forehead. Gira opened the passage and Ruby ducked down, slowly making her way through the dark passage.

"I know you don't want to do this. I don't blame you. Look, you can still turn back now, there's no shame in doing it." Asriel said.

"I know, Asriel. But I have to do this. For the sake of everyone, I have to stay determined." Ruby said.

"I thought you'd say that. Well, don't let me stop you." Asriel said.

"Oh boy. What in the world have I gotten myself into." Ruby muttered to herself, eventually having to crawl on her belly. "Ugh. I hate tight spaces." Ruby grunted as she made her way through. Eventually, she finally reached the end. Though it wasn't very bright, the vast gold was enough to show her her way around. And what treasures were in there! Think of anything at all, it was there in pure gold, and perhaps with a few jewels embedded. The mere sight was enough to take Ruby's breath away, and she had seen a lot of beautiful stuff in the Underground alone.

"Alright. A large, deadly, fire breathing lizard. It's just a very large needle in the world's largest and richest hay stack." Ruby said. She went down to the treasures and started her search, pushing through gold and the likes, even a few rather odd stones here and there. She was tempted to take some of the stuff, but recalled Gira's words and left it be. She even found a ring with a large beautiful ruby, which she almost pocketed. 'Keep it together, Ruby. Huntresses don't steal from others.' Ruby thought to herself, pushing herself away from the ring. She searched and searched for what felt like hours. Might have been days. When you're underneath the earth, it's hard to keep track of time. She eventually found a rather sharp object, what seemed to be a claw. It wasn't made of gold, so she knew she struck gold. Metaphorically and literally. She nearly jumped for joy until she remembered to not startle the dragon.

Unfortunately, he was already awake.

The gold rustled and jumped as the dragon awoke, tossing gold and other various objects everywhere. Ruby ducked down to avoid most of the debris, but some still hit her nonetheless. Soon, she looked up to see the monstrosity that was Smaug.

"Well, thief, you have done well to get this far in my chambers." Smaug hissed, his voice crackled and scratchy, like fingernails on a chalkboard, which made the hair on Ruby's back stand.

"I- I promise you. I did not come to steal from you, Smaug, the great beast of Atlas. I came to ask you for your help." Ruby said.

"How childish. You believe that I would help you simply if you ask politely?" Smaug said.

"No, not at all. But I believe that somewhere inside of you, there is the essence of a being that will help humanity one more time." Ruby said.

"Then you guess wrong. I am no fool. You wish to draw me out and finish what you began centuries ago." Smaug snarled.

"No! No, that's not it! I have no desire to harm you, Smaug! I tell you the truth, Vale has fallen to Kemuri, and you are our only hope of reclaiming it." Ruby said.

"Hmm... You do not appear to be lying. Please. Humor me more." Smaug said, lowering down.

"Please, Vale is no longer home to just humans, but also monsters." Ruby said.

"Monsters? Now I know you lie. They were sealed underground a millennia ago." Smaug said.

"No, I assure you I provide no falsehood! I am the one who freed the monsters from Mt. Ebott. We have come from the other side of Remnant to ask you for your help. And whatever task it takes to prove to you I mean well, then whatever task it takes I will uphold." Ruby said.

"You have nice manners. But I know better than to trust a plan of Atlas." Smaug said.

"No, it wasn't Atlas that sent us! It was us-" Ruby said.

"Us? Why, I only see one human standing before me. Tell me, where are your friends hiding?" Smaug asked.

"It was me and ten others, and we all came with the same goal to awaken you and help us defeat Kemuri." Ruby said.

"Then I am correct. One of your friends is not of Atlas, but they still plan to destroy all." Smaug snarled.

"I assure you, none of us plan to destroy the world. We only want to save it. We're hunters and huntresses, we're trained to help those that can't fight for themselves. And that is what we're doing now. So please, please just repeat the miracle you performed many centuries ago and defeat Kemuri. If not for humans, for monsters." Ruby pleaded.

"Hmm... You seem to really care for humans. Good. Then you can watch them all die by my hand." Smaug laughed, rushing off.

"Wa- No! Wait! You can't! Please!" Ruby exclaimed, running after Smaug. Just then, she came up with an idea that'd might kill her, but it had a better chance of convincing Smaug to kill Kemuri. "You're scared."

"Scared? Of you?" Smaug laughed.

"Of Kemuri. You only kill humans because you know you'll win. Kemuri, though, you're afraid of. You know Kemuri's power matches yours, and that is why you cower in this mountain, neglecting to fight your opposite." Ruby said, Smaug snarling.

"You think I'm afraid of a shadow? I'll show you! Kemuri is nothing!" Smaug roared, bursting through the blocked off entrance, flying at blinding speeds. He flew over the borders, and past Blizzard Range, and right over Atlas itself. He soared across the seas with wings expanded to their fullest.

Meanwhile, everyone was now at the front of the kingdom. As well, they saw another object flying towards them. It soon landed feet away from them to turn out to be Kieta.

"Tell me. Are you all. Just. COMPLETELY STUPID?!" Kieta yelled.

"Uh, what are you referring to?" Kerási asked

"I was trying to help you. YOU IDIOTS!" Kieta shouted.

"Wait, you were the one that blocked off the entrance?" Eric said.

"Yes. I thought maybe you'd take that as a sign to turn around and head back, but I should have known better. Now Smaug is-" Kieta sighed.

"Going to kill Kemuri. Yeah, I kinda convinced him." Ruby said.

"Great, now they're in denial." Kieta sighed.

"No, really. Just fly over to Atlas and see." Ruby said. Kieta flew in the air and seemed to be shocked.

"How in the hell did you convince him?" Kieta asked.

"I just said a few words of encouragement and he was off." Ruby said like it was no big deal.

"Well, we'd better get back to Vale to be there for the big fight." Kieta said.

"Oh, now that I think about it, I think I saw a shortcut to Vale a ways back here." Sans said.

"Oh, now you find a shortcut." Vasha sighed. They followed Sans, and soon they were back at the Grimm infested city known as Vale.

"Uh, we'd better get down." Eric said, pointing to Beacon. They could see that Kemuri was finally beginning to awaken. The stone dragon began to crack and move, the rock breaking apart to reveal Kemuri, back and more pissed than ever. Just then, Smaug landed in the city, letting out a roar of anger.

"You should have stayed in your rock!" Smaug roared, slamming into Kemuri, the Grimm dragon roaring as it clawed at Smaug. He then sent a stream of fire at Kemuri, which seemed to do nothing. Kemuri then grabbed Smaug by the neck and threw him into the tower, the whole building crumbling on top of him. Smaug then swiped once at Kemuri, black blood flying out of the wound.

"Someone pass the popcorn." Nora said.

"Smaug seems to be doing a number on Kemuri. It won't be long." Gira said, who seemed to be smiling the widest out of all of them. In fact, some people had started to father on the streets of Vale to see the raging battle. Smaug then spit more fire, setting Kemuri ablaze. However, Kemuri seemed to absorb the fire, and then returned the attack on Smaug, but the fire had no light, nor any burn. It was pitch black, and cold as ice. It seemed to freeze Smaug for a while before his own body heat melted through the ice. Their fires them collided, sending a wave of fire and ice spilling over Beacon. Smaug slashed at Kemuri again, hitting twice and opening a gash in his face, thanks to Ruby. In fact, Ruby now saw that Kemuri's right eye was missing.

The battle raged on, eventually numbers of Gryphons appearing. They swarmed Smaug and clawed and pecked at his scales, but none were enough to penetrate. Smaug let out a torrent of fire, incinerating all the Gryphons. Kemuri took the chance and charged Smaug, slamming him into one of the dorm buildings. Ruby hoped no one was still in there. As Kemuri loomed over Smaug, he sent a raging column of fire through Kemuri's chest, and the Grimm dragon let out one last ear drum rupturing cry before he fell dead on the ruins of Beacon tower. Smaug then let our a triumphant roar, but that was his last as a beam of darkness evaporated his head, his lifeless body falling back in the dorms.

"As I expected. The plan is coming through." Gira said.

[many days ago, Sanctuary]

"M'lady, they continue their advance on North Peak." Iserlan said to Salem.

"Then contact Gira and tell him to commence Operation Mind Games." Salem said.

"As you wish, Salem." Iserlan said, vanishing.

"Now then, for you. Why did you hand over Mistral?" Salem asked the newest member.

"It is simple. Mistral was too little. The world is my ambition." Richtofen said.

"I see. Then as your first task, I want you to call Tyrian off his mission and go back to the original plan." Salem said.

"Yes, m'lady." Richtofen said, exiting.

"Iserlan should have a fun time with this." Salem smirked.

[present time, ruins of Beacon]

"Gira, the plan must commence now." Iserlan said as he took the last of Kemuri's soul. He then took his newest host. Gira.

"Operation Mind Games successful. Iserlan, my form is now yours to control." Gira said.

"You FILTHY LYING SCUM!" Eric roared, unsheathing Aster Sword and rushing Gira, but his power was too great as he sent Eric on his back.

"I am far beyond the power of the moon, boy." Gira said.

"But why? I thought you really cared about humanity." Eric snarled.

"Ha! You all were only ever a means to an end. Smaug was the key to this true intention, and I must say, you delivered quite well. If it's any consolation, I'll make sure you won't have to suffer." Gira said, raising his and and firing a beam of pure darkness. However, something blocked the beam. It was Ruby, with her eyes sending out a streak of pure silver, just like at Beacon tower when Kemuri first awakened. "Hmph. Figures. Then you're the first to die." Gira smirked, drawing out a blade of shadows and swinging at Ruby, but Crescent Rose blocked the strike. However, it now was surrounded by the silver streaks, shining brightly. "So resilient. Alright, how about this?" Gira snarled, enveloping Ruby in a vortex of darkness. This caught her off guard, and was therefore sent flying.

"Ruby! No!" Jaune exclaimed.

"And now for the rest of you. You all have front row seats to the destruction of Remnant!" Gira laughed, wrapping them all in chains of darkness. Then, the whole planet shook, darkness blocking out the sun and enveloping the whole world in darkness. The lands erupted, and Grimm of all kinds poured out, like the fight against Indominus, but this time it was much more effective. And this occurred in the other three kingdoms, which soon were to fall to the Grimm. "This is how the world ends! Take one last look at your precious sun, because it can't save you now! You thought you could run from the darkness! Now you have nowhere to run, no light to illuminate your path! All that remains is your fall, and that starts with all those that you care about! Welcome to Remnant's demise!" Gira laughed, and that was all that Ruby heard before she lost consciousness and crashed into the ocean.

A/N

How's that for a plot twist? Yeah, I decided Gira being a good guy wasn't part of his character, so I disassembled everything you knew about him and shoved it in a completely different arrangement. Anyway, yeah, still no one has gotten the references, so I'll give it another chapter. And there's a few more references in this chapter, so I'll give a shoutout for those that guess some of them. With that, I'll leave you with this.

[?'s POV]

The world has been betrayed. We have all been betrayed by the very thing we sought to destroy. Kemuri and Indominus were just stepping stones to his awakening. Now that he has their power, nothing is stopping him from spreading his darkness to the world. No, the entire universe. But that's how the timelines went. That is why I tried to warn them. Now I will have to fight him, my worst enemy, who I should have killed long, long ago. This isn't about saving the world anymore. This is redemption for my mistakes, and my sins. Thankfully, our trump card is still fresh.

Next Chapter: Future of Darkness


	42. Chapter 42: Future of Darkness

Chapter 42: Future of Darkness

In the middle of the ocean, Ruby floated. On, and on, and on, all the while the world around her fell apart. Grimm ran rampant, darkness and chaos reigned supreme, and all her friends were imprisoned deep within a castle.

And Ruby was out in the ocean, unconscious, and unable to do a thing. Then Sea Dragons appeared, circling her. Then a harpoon struck one and killed it, making the others run off.

"Bloody Sea Dragons. Oi! We got a girl out there! Spin the boat around and get her on!" A man yelled with a British accent. They turned the ship and boarded Ruby, who soon started coughing up sea water. "'Ey lass, you're alright."

"Ah... thanks. Where am I?" Ruby asked.

"You're in the bloody ocean, lass. Found ya unconscious surrounded by Sea Dragons. Bloody things are swarming like flies to dead flesh." The man said.

"Where is Vale?" Ruby asked.

"Jus' o'er there. 'Ere was this big splash, so I assume that was you." The man said. Ruby then turned to see Vale, shrouded in darkness with Beacon half constructed floating in the air.

"Oh my God." Ruby gasped at the sight. "Gira did all that?"

"Who did what?" The man asked.

"Gira, this person we traveled with, he... he basically is creating the end of the universe." Ruby said.

"Now why in hell would he do that?" The man asked.

"Because humanity sealed him in Mt. Ebott for a few centuries." Ruby answered. "Now he is going to destroy not just Remnant, but all existing planets."

"That's one crazy bastard. We should take 'im out." The man said, loading a harpoon.

"No, you can't! I tried to stop him, but not even I could. Not even the Aster Sword could pierce his armor." Ruby said.

"He's that tough?" The man said surprised.

"Yeah. But I have a plan." Ruby said. "Take me to the outskirts of Vale."

[A few hours later]

Ruby had made it to Vale, but she wasn't heading for Vale itself. She's have to be completely naïve to try to take him down in her current state. She made for Mountain Glenn, in hopes of finding someone. Anyone. Thankfully, she found some Faunus that'd been there when the attack started. She went over to find them fending off Grimm, but a whole horde of them. No, not a horde, an army. And Ruby assumed more like this army were all around Remnant. She went over to help the stragglers, but they only managed to kill a few more of them before finally having to retreat.

"I haven't seen anything like those Grimm before. What the hell is going on?" A deer Faunus asked.

"Iserlan and Gira are ending the world. They rose legions of Grimm from the darkness and forced the, to attack the other kingdoms." Ruby said.

"And who are you?" A tiger Faunus asked.

"Ruby Rose. And you?" Ruby asked.

"Name's Simba, but that's not important. Right now, we have a legion of Grimm to deal with." Simba said.

"Jeez, only trying to help." Ruby said.

"Don't mind him. He gets angered easily." A lion Faunus said. "I'm Mufa."

"Nice to meet you Mufa. So where do we go now?" Ruby asked.

"The only safe place now is death." Simba said.

"No, we can fight back. We have to, otherwise the universe will die." Ruby said.

"The universe? Isn't that a bit ambiguous?" Simba asked.

"Gira is a being beyond any Grimm or person. We need to form a plan. And I already have one." Ruby said.

"Is this plan what I think it is?" Asriel asked.

"Yes it is." Ruby said.

"Oh, this is going to be sick." Asriel said excitedly.

"Hey, who're you talking to?" Mufa asked.

"Myself... kinda." Ruby said, making Mufa raise an eyebrow. "Look, we need to go to the next settlement. I'll explain once everything is done." Ruby then realized something. The snow that was suspended in the air. It was snowing when Gira took control, and the snow hung in the air like it was frozen in time. Ruby touched the snow flake, and it melted in her finger. "Time really is dead now. It's all my fault. I... I can fix this. I have to."

[Meanwhile, Atlas]

Weiss was in the library as usual, reading books until the sunlight suddenly vanished. She looked out the window to see what seemed to be a bad storm. 'Just another snow storm.' Weiss thought to herself, that was until her butler, Klein, stormed in(get it?).

"Madame Schnee! Quickly! It's an emergency!" Klein exclaimed.

"What's wrong? It's just a storm." Weiss said.

"No, it's much worse! Look outside!" Klein exclaimed. Weiss sighed and looked outside, and saw the ground. Gargantuan Grimm were breaking through the barrier, while outside of it cracks spewed from the earth, like blood from an open wound.

"Oh my God." Weiss gasped.

"The defenses won't hold forever. Miss Schnee, we need to evacuate the city!" Klein said.

"And what? Just leave everyone else to die by the Grimm? No, I'm staying to hold off the Grimm! It's my job, and I've only been sitting here and reading while my friends take on the world!" Weiss exclaimed.

"If Weiss is staying to fight, then so am I." Winter said.

"I- you- bu-... I see. There's no way to convince you otherwise, I assume. I'm willing to bet Master Schnee will bite my head off once he learns of this, but... it is your duties." Klein sighed, leaving the sisters.

"Come on, sister. Let's defend the city." Winter said, and she said this with a smile, which filled Weiss with... DETERMINATION.

[Meanwhile, borders of Atlas]

The team had just landed on shore, and had a warm welcome from the Grimm. Eventually, a child came from the forest. They killed the pursuing Grimm and turned their attention to the boy.

"Are you alright? We'll get you to safety." Blake said.

"I'm fine, but... that was my family." The boy said.

"What, the Grimm? Are you... are you joking with us?" Yang asked.

"No, I'm Freon, an apprentice of Gira, taught to speak the tongue of Grimm. But recently, they just won't listen." Freon said.

"Iserlan must've taken control if all the Grimm here. That explains the clouds of darkness." Alphys said.

"Iserlan. That son of a-" Freon snarled, the earth trembling beneath them as more cracks appeared in the forest, countless Grimm pouring from it.

"No time like today to go out fighting." Yang said, loading Ember Celica.

"We'll make sure these Grimm don't make it longer than a day." Alphys said, activating Thunder Razors.

"If we die, we all die together." Blake said, taking a fighting stance. And with all three of them standing together ready to fight, they were all filled with DETERMINATION.

[seven months later, Atlas, near collapse]

Ruby had finally made it to Atlas, after many battles with Grimm. But she stood in front of a battlefield between man and Grimm, both Grimm and human bodies littering the place, blood on almost every wall. Ruby had never seen a battle this bloody, and it sickened her. She looked around for any sign of life that wasn't Grimm, and she heard gunfire, coming from deep in the city. She ran to the source to see multiple Grimm attacking what seemed to be the last of the Atlas defenses. She ran to their aid and slew a Beringel, while the others managed to kill off the last of the Grimm.

"Thank you, huntress. I fear if you hadn't saved us, that Beringel would've finished us off." A guard said.

"It's my pleasure." Ruby said.

"Wait, that voice. Ruby?" Ruby heard, and the voice was familiar to her too.

"Yang?" Ruby questioned, her half sister coming from the small crowd.

"Ruby!" Yang exclaimed, Beringel hugging her.

"Ah! Can't... breath." Ruby gasped, Yang letting her down.

"I'm so glad you're alive!" Yang said.

"Me too, sis. How'd you even get here?" Ruby asked.

"With the help of some friends." Yang said, showing Blake, Weiss, and Alphys.

"Girls!" Ruby exclaimed, all of them hugging. "Hurray! Team RWBY is back in the building!"

"Now we're back in action. So... why is all this happening?" Blake asked.

"Because Gira was working with Iserlan the whole time. Now the others are captured by him, and I don't even want to think about what they're going through." Ruby said.

"I'm positive we'll rescue them. You can count on that." Alphys said.

"Yeah! With all of us together, nothing can stop us now!" Yang said.

"I wouldn't get too confident. The Grimm are stronger than usual, if you've forgotten." Weiss said.

"Don't be the bummer drummer of the group." Yang said.

"Alright, enough arguing. I made a plan two months back, and now that we're back together, I'm positive this'll work." Ruby said.

"Alright. So what's the plan?" Blake asked.

[the next day, Beacon's Shadow]

The cells were filled with people and monsters that were a threat to Gira/Iserlan. That included team JNPR, what remained of team PAUS(minus Alphys), Eric, Kerási, Vasha, Toriel, Asgore, Kieta, and everyone else in the near kingdoms that were captured, and all were cursing the name of Iserlan and Gira.

"I swear, I'll kill him first chance I get." Eric snarled.

"And when will that chance be? We're trapped in prisons made of the most durable material in the universe with no weapons, and with no plan to kill a chaos god that couldn't be stopped by our strongest fighter. If you ask me, I'd say we're screwed." Kerási said.

"We have to keep hoping. Ruby may not be dead." Ren said. Then, a harmonica started playing in Papyrus's and Sans's cell.

"Sans, since when did you get a harmonica?" Papyrus asked.

"Since forever. Just in case I was in a cell." Sans replied, continuing to play the harmonica.

"Gotta hand it to him, for a monster with no lungs, he plays it pretty well." Jaune said.

"When do you think this'll all end?" Vasha sighed.

"What? The imprisonment or the end of the world?" Papyrus asked.

"Both." Vasha said.

"Imprisonment, most likely when we rot and decay. End of the world, when Gira decides to." Papyrus said.

"Sounds about right." Kerási said.

"I was only trying to prevent all this. We should have gone for Iserlan first then killed Kemuri." Kieta said.

"But he was the one that was leading us. He knew too well that they were in Sanctuary, now we're paying that price for trusting him." Eric said.

[Meanwhile, top of Beacon's Shadow]

Gira sat back in his throne and watched as his darkness spread to the corners of the universe, and he laughed. "Soon, all of reality will end." Gira chuckled.

"And we will be there to rule by your side." Salem said. Everyone was there except for Cinder, who stayed behind in Sanctuary. But the statement made Gira laugh even more.

"'We'? Who ever said anything about 'we'?" Gira laughed, shrouding them all in darkness. "The universe cannot be ruled by weaklings like you. Besides... you have something of mine." Gira then visibly sucked the life out of them, and their bodies vanished into thin air, and Gira grew even more powerful. "Ah, but there's one missing. They knew they'd be betrayed by my hand, so they left behind the most powerful of them all. The Fall Maiden."

[Two months later, the borders of Vacuo]

The team had finally made it to Vacuo, but it didn't seem to be doing any better than the other kingdoms. Grimm again ran wild like the world was theirs. People, Faunus, and monsters ran in fear, and the team ran in to save them, Ruby sniping an Omega Beowolf, which is like an Alpha, but much stronger and much better armored. They ran to the other Grimm and Blake decapitated an Omega Ursa, while Yang ripped off the tail of a DeathStalker, and Weiss slew the last of the Grimm.

"Thank you for saving us. You, with the rapier. Allow us to thank you with this." A deer Faunus said, giving Weiss a strange rapier. "From what I heard, that is the Grimm Rapier, a sword that all Grimm know and fear."

"Thank you for this gift. I'll be sure to use it well." Weiss said, replacing Myrtenaster with it. They continued to walk through the barren wasteland, cracked and distorted. They even saw some chunks of land floating in the air, and in some places gravity was distorted, and nothing was what it should be. Existence was upside down in Remnant, and they knew this well.

"How could two Grimm souls do this much chaos?" Ruby asked herself.

"I dunno, but we have to keep moving. Vacuo's kingdom must not be far." Yang said.

"I think I can see it in the horizon now." Blake said. Sure enough, a kingdom came into view, but it was smoldering, ruined, collapsed. They then ran to the wrecked kingdom, and sure enough, the only living thing they saw was Grimm. Ruby acted first and impaled a Creep through the chest and threw it at another Creep, which she shot. Weiss then drew Grimm Rapier, and all the Grimm cowered at the mere sight of it. She hacked and slashed through the Grimm, all of them ripping apart like paper in a shredder. Then, the unexpected happened, and a White Fang member tackled a Beowolf and killed it. They then saw the White Fang, Adam in the lead.

"You..!" Yang snarled.

"Look, I know you hate me, and you all have no reason to trust me, but this is not what I intended to happen. I only wanted Faunus to live in peace, for humans to see what their actions would bring. I never wanted this to happen." Adam said.

"You think one apology will keep me from-" Yang growled, extending Ember Celica, but Ruby stopped her.

"No, Yang. If they truly are sorry, they can help with the plan." Ruby said. "Adam, are you truly sorry for your actions, and a better question, are you willing to do whatever it takes to redeem yourself?"

"Yes to both. If it means humans and Faunus will live in peace, then I'll do it." Adam said. "And to show my regret for these actions, I give you a gift." Adam then pulled out a sword of ancient design. It was bright white with a golden and silver hilt. "This is Excalibur, the ancient sword used to expel Iserlan many centuries ago. Perhaps you can repeat the actions of history, but this time, kill Iserlan."

Blake then took the sword, replacing it with Gambol Shroud. "You have our thanks. We will correct what has been wronged." Blake said.

[Three months later, Beacon's Shadow]

As they neared Vale, they came to the final destination. Mt. Ebott. There, multiple monsters came out and rallied. One of them gave, as thanks for saving the Underground from the Grimm, a strange sword that seemed ancient, yet modern. It was a silver long sword with a red mechanical hilt. "We have three of the four blades. I'm certain the Aster Sword is in Beacon." Ruby said.

"But how do we get in?" Yang asked as she took the Stratoblade.

"With an army." Ruby said.

[meanwhile, far under Beacon's Shadow]

Gira/Iserlan was now looking at a pool of a pure dark water, ripples appearing at random, but no fish could ever survive in this pool.

"The dead. They are so eager to escape their prison." Iserlan laughed. "And I shall deliver them. The Hades Reflection will break today." Iserlan then slashed the water, and instead of splashing, it shattered like glass, tens of thousands of evil and dark spirits pouring from the now shattered pool.

"WE ARE FREE! FREE TO REAP AND PURGE THE WORLD!" They shouted, their voices like metal screeching. Any sane man would run from the mere sight of these demons. They possessed no form, at least, when they first come out of the Hades Reflection. And the Hades Reflection is as it sounds. It is a direct gateway connecting hell with Remnant. And it's counterpart is the Elysium Reflection, a more peaceful pool, and one might hear the joyful sounds of angels and wonderful warriors that fought for the greater good, and went to heaven. It is also said that it's heavenly lights shine through the pool and make a brilliant light in its cave, reflecting off of the thousands of gems and crystals in its cave. It is hardly ever seen, let alone known about. But some say that those that seek Elysium will find the last light of the world.

And that's exactly where Ruby and co were headed.

[Weeks later, half a mile from Beacon's Shadow]

Iserlan sat atop his throne. It had been a year since he had conquered Remnant, but the one thing that had him surprised was the amount of resistance. There was none.

"I am glad that resistance is little to none, but it also has me a bit concerned." Iserlan hummed, looking out to his darkness. His creation. His utter majestic darkness which he made with his own power.

"Master Iserlan! Trouble!" A demon exclaimed.

"Trouble? Don't be silly, there hasn't been any resistance since I came into pow-" Iserlan laughed.

"Gira! Hear me now!" Iserlan heard, looking out to Vale, where he saw his only threat.

"Hah! The little Rose finally comes from the ground!" Iserlan laughed.

"Gira- no, Iserlan! Your tyranny ends here!" Ruby shouted.

"Oh really? And just how do you plan to stop me? Do you remember our last trifle?" Iserlan said.

"I remember well, but this time I don't stand alone. NOW!" Ruby shouted, raising Crescent Rose, and then it happened. From the forest came tens of thousands of people, all armed with swords, axes, knives, machetes, daggers, spears, shields, and various other weapons. They spread all across Vale in a wide march, even the White Fang in the crowd of people, along with many other Faunus and monsters. "A year. A whole year I spent, traveling the world and saving people. And not only did I save people, I also trained them to fight. I gave them weapons to fight, help to survive, and this is only the beginning of this army." Ruby said, waving Crescent Rose again. Then, shining chariots flew to the sky, made of sunlight and clouds, and the people on it had shimmering forms, as bright as the sun. And one held the rest of team RWBY(plus Alphys).

"Huh. You even found the Elysium Reflection. So what? I have a legion of Grimm and the Demon Army on my side! Your time spent will only prove futile! Now, humanity, Faunus and monster kind, die now!" Iserlan roared, and the demons flew, and Grimm ran wild.

"Very well. Everyone, attack!" Ruby ordered, and the armies rushed, clashing into the other. Their blades clashed, and multiple Grimm and demons fell. The Angels shone with bright power, and with every demon falling, the Hades Reflection grew stronger, encasing each demon. But at the same time, every angel that fell made the Elysium Reflection stronger. This was that one could only call the Battle of Remnant's Life.

A/N

Cliffhangers! Man, we are just racking them up. Anyway, thanks for reading, as always, and I have a few things to say before the chapter ends. First off, I recently published a new original story, called RWBY: Rise of the Hunters. If you'd like, go ahead and check it out. Shameless self-advertising, I know. Next, I would like to mention the references of chapter 40.

First is Narajama, who is a reference to Nakayama from Borderlands, as well as New Nevah being a reference to New Haven(see what I did there?).

Second is Snowshroud Forest, which is a reference to Treeshroud Forest from Pokemon Mystery Dungeon 2.

Lastly is Freon, which is a reference to the Hobbit character, Beorn.

Anyway, with that, till next chapter!

Next chapter: But All Refused to Die

BOIS, THIS GONNA BE THE FLIPPING FINAL FINALE!


	43. Chapter 43: But All Refuse to Die FINALE

Chapter 43: But the Universe Refused to Die FINAL FINALE

As the two armies clashed, swords and claws clashing against each other, team RWBY charged into Beacon, racing to their friends. But for the Elysian and human army, they were still clashing against the demons and Grimm, and then a streak of purple darkness burst from the earth, the streak revealing to be a shadow dragon, and it charged into the humans, devouring them one by one.

"We're getting torn apart by that thing! Take it out!" A human shouted.

"Dreemurr, you're up." An Elysian commander said.

[Meanwhile, in the depths of Beacon]

Far underneath Beacon team RWBY ran down, hoping to find a clue to where their friends were. And deep in there were the cells, where they cried out to be saved. They were in the deepest levels of the castle, so they had no idea that there was a battle going on above.

"With Gira in control of the demons and Grimm, you think maybe soon he'll end our suffering?" Eric sighed.

"I don't know. Either we'll rot in here or he'll have us for Grimm dinner." Kerási said.

"Yeah, that sounds right." Eric said.

"How about an option three?" They heard. They then looked to see team RWBY at the entrance.

"Ruby! Yang, Blake, Weiss! Ha! I knew you'd get to us eventually!" Jaune cheered.

"Never lost hope in ya, kiddo." Sans smiled.

"Thanks Sans and Jaune. Now... we found you, now how do we get you out?" Ruby said, examining the bars. "No metal I've ever seen. Doubt conventional weapons will work."

"Hey, this looks important. I'm gonna blow it up." Yang said, blasting a panel, and the bars starting to open. "I am a genius!"

"Great. Now how do we fight an army of demons with no weapons?" Vasha asked.

"I've calculated, and our chances of survival with weapons will increase five fold than survival with no weapons." Kieta said.

"Then let's find them. Asriel, you-" Ruby said, then remembered. "Oh, right. Well, on our own."

"Why? What happened to Asriel?" Asgore asked.

"Nothing. Just... his soul isn't bound to mine now." Ruby said.

"What does that mean?" Toriel asked.

"You'll see soon." Ruby smirked.

"Right, so... I'm willing to bet they locked up your weapons in the armor lockers. I'm sure we passed it on the upper levels." Weiss said.

"Yeah, sounds about right." Papyrus said.

"Let's do it." Jaune said.

"We'll fight off any demons we encounter." Yang said, unsheathing Stratoblade. They then escalated upward, finding the armory after a few ten floors. Ruby shot the lock and they went inside, grabbing their weapons.

"Ah, Cheli Namu. How I missed you." Kerási said.

"Alright, now that we're armed up, we-" Ruby said.

"Wait, we're missing one. Oh, guess which one." Yang sighed.

"But if Gira didn't put Aster Sword here, then where-" Ruby wondered, then it came to her. "Oh, of course he would."

[the top of Beacon]

Gira stood in his tower, looking down at the carnage unfold before him. He then turned his attention to his trophy wall, where it held the last key to his downfall.

"The Aster Sword. How you beg to be released. But sadly, the moon and sun are nothing compared to my power. The only reason I haven't destroyed you yet is because you are still strong with power. Ugh, I knew that I should never have mentioned your true form to Eric. No matter. They will fall and bow before me, in due time." Gira laughed. "I am talking to a sword."

[Meanwhile, on the battlefield]

The shadow dragon tore through the Elysian defenses, but it was then shot by a shining star. It stumbled back as it looked at its attacker. And it was the one person it truly feared. A prince goat monster draped in sunlight, a large cannon in his left and, and a saber in his right.

"Die." Is all he said as he fired more stars at him, each making him weaker. Then, he fired the cannon and a beam of pure sunlight shot out, frying the shadow dragon. But it still lived, but not for long as the prince slammed his saber in its head, finishing it off. "The dragon is dead! Push forward!"

"Yes, Prince Asriel!" The Elysians shouted, charging at the demons. And the humans pushed forward, slaying Grimm after Grimm, demon after demon! but the other side did the same. And it seemed that when one demon was slain, another took its place. Asriel then saw where they came from. Deep within Remnant itself.

"Commander Zealous, Commander Rose, follow me! I know where they come from!" Asriel shouted.

"We will follow!" Zealous said, the three charging through the demons, slashing and hacking.

"Sergeant Undyne, take command!" Summer shouted.

"Yes, Commander Rose!" Undyne saluted, taking command of the Elysian army. "Keep slaying them! Draw them away from Zealous, Rose, and Asriel!" Undyne then looked to the three commanders. "Be safe, kid."

Asriel, Zealous, and Summer then charged under Remnant, finding the source of the demons, hundreds flying out. And the cave was pitch black, the only light being their radiance. And they slew each demon that came through. They then saw what it was they were flying from. A small pool in a crater.

"That's the Hades Reflection. We need to seal it." Zealous grunted.

"How do we seal it?" Asriel asked.

"See these shards on the ground? That was the seal. We need to recreate it. See, it's like a chameleon. It blends in with its surroundings, and since it's underground, it presents itself as a simple underground pool. This kind of seal is easy to replicate, but one strong enough to hold in a legion takes more time." Summer said.

"And we created it how?" Asriel asked.

"Like this." Summer said, summoning a sheet of light that covered the crater and filled it. The demons then seemed to slow down, one occasionally making it through, but was quickly killed. And Summer began to chant an incantation, which seemed to create chains inside. Soon, she stopped, and the sheet turned into a pool, with ripples on every occasion.

"The Hades Reflection is sealed. They can't come back now." Zealous smirked.

"And now we finish every last one of them." Asriel chuckled, unsheathing Chaos Saber. But then, an explosion triggered.

"Shit! He's wired this entire cave to blow! Run!" Zealous exclaimed, the three running through the tunnel for their post-lives.

They then escaped the tunnel, charging back to the fight. And the demons fell, each returning to hell for good. And in a half hour, the demons retreated, as well as the Grimm, and the humans, monsters, Faunus, and Elysians cheered in victory. The battle was won, it had seemed. But then, Gira erupted from his tower and he slew a fourth of the Elysians in one swing, all the others being disorientated and falling to the ground. And Gira laughed at their easy fall.

"I'm impressed that you managed to fight my army, and with such fury. Humans really are the stuff of legends. But no, not today. Today, let it be marked as the fall of life!" Gira laughed, and he swung for the final blow, but his sword was blocked by Asriel. And around him swirled seven hearts. Seven humans who had sacrificed for the sake of everyone.

"Not this time, Gira. I knew I couldn't trust you. From the very beginning, I knew something was off about you. Now, I will correct what was wronged! With the Elysians' final trump card!" Asriel grunted, pushing back Gira.

"Ah, but you forget, child. I control time and space now. For example." Gira laughed, vanishing from sight and slashing Asriel in the back. "Face it, Asriel. You can never beat me." Gira laughed.

'That's the point.' Asriel though, smirking. 'Ruby... I hope you know what you're doing.'

[Meanwhile, the top of Beacon]

Everyone had gotten to the top, seeing the Aster Sword on Gira's trophy wall. Eric then reached for it, but it flew off, and it didn't go to Eric. Instead, it went to Ruby.

"What in the-" Ruby exclaimed as she held the sword.

"It must have chosen you. The reasons, I don't know." Vasha said.

"Does it not see me worthy?" Eric asked.

"I wouldn't say that. Maybe because the other three swords chose Weiss, Blake, and Yang, the Aster Sword chose Ruby. Maybe it knew that she could beat Gira with it." Asgore said.

"Then we have to finish this. Once and for all." Ruby said.

"You can do this, girls." Pyrrha said.

"Yeah, kick his back stabbing butt for us!" Nora cheered.

"I don't know what we can do for you, but we'll be rooting for you." Ren said.

"I know you four can do it!" Jaune said.

"I'll be cheering for you! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus cheered.

"Good luck, kid." Sans winked.

"Be careful, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang." Toriel said.

"Team RWBY, for the sake of all life, you must stay determined." Asgore said.

"Make sure to keep Gira's head as a souvenir!" Kerási said.

"Kill him for the sake of everyone!" Vasha cheered.

"I'm sure you can do it. Calculations say that you'll have a high probability of killing Iserlan and saving the universe." Kieta said.

"Hey. I'm sorry. I should never have trusted Gira. But you can correct my mistake and save the universe." Eric said.

"Everyone... thank you. And we WILL stop Gira. No, we will stop Iserlan." Ruby said.

They then were enveloped in light, and were launched into battle. They saw Asriel beaten and battered and Gira coming for the final blow, but they all slashed and landed, each of their blows landing on Gira and sending him back. His eyes were then filled with hatred and anger.

"You!" Gira yelled. "Ruby Rose! I should have killed you when I had the chance!"

"Don't worry, you won't have any more chances." Yang smirked. She then sent a gust of wind with Stratoblade which blew right into Gira. Ruby used the gust to propel herself at Gira, hitting him in the chest, but his dark aura held. And as she raised Aster Sword again, she felt something. A snow flake. And another. And another. And they collected in her hair as she looked up. And then it hit her.

"The snow. It's falling." Ruby gasped.

"What? That's impossible! I stopped time! This shouldn't happen!" Gira shouted.

"And do you know why you couldn't destroy the universe? Why all your attempts to make it fade have always failed? It's because of me." Asriel grunted. "I held back your darkness with the determination I collected over the years. And do you know the best part? During that time, I learned to restart time. I just waited until now to do it."

"But that's impossible! You can't! I am a god! YOU CAN'T KILL ME!" Gira shouted.

"That's all I can do. Team RWBY, the fate of the world is now in your hands." Asriel said, collapsing.

"Thank you, Asriel. Now... Gira! For the sake of everything living, we, team RWBY, will strike you down!" Ruby shouted, the four charging at him.

[for best effect, play Dialga's Fight to the Finish]

Ruby was the first to strike, slashing him in the chest twice before dodging his swing. Blake then swung with Excalibur and struck his arm, piercing his metal armor as he yelled in pain. He swung again, but her clone took the hit as she evaded. Weiss then used Grimm Rapier to pierce his dark aura and slash his leg and arm, pushing him back. He shouted as shadows turned into a mini gun and fired at the four. They evaded each bullet, Yang using Stratoblade to stop some bullets. She then turned the wind into a torrent that hurled the bullets back at Gira, each one hitting him dead on. But he still stood.

"Alright, Sunlight Twister!" Ruby shouted. Blake then leaped up, Yang using Stratoblade to propel her up and turning the wind into a twister and sending her back down onto Gira, smashing into him with Excalibur and creating a blast of sunlight. "Now, Solar Eclipse!" Ruby shouted, and her and Blake taking turns slashing Gira, Blake taking Ruby's legs and throwing her at Gira and hitting him like a wheel. "Grimm Eclipse!" Ruby then leaped into the sky, Weiss slamming Gira and slashing his chest as Ruby sent a beam of moonlight that hit Weiss's blade, as she swung again, her strength increasing as her blade struck Gira, his form now beginning to become weak. "Now! Finish him with Lunar Hurricane!" Ruby then leaped to the blunt edge of Yang's blade as she was sent upward, Yang creating a powerful tornado which caught Ruby, and then pointed the blade at Gira as she took Ruby's hand and flew with her, both their blades combining as they pierced Gira. And then he knelt.

"Urg! Gah! RRAAAAAAAHHH!" Gira shouted. "Why? Why can I never seem to kill you? Perhaps... this form has become too ragged. Fine then. I've always wanted to feel free from this damn form." Iserlan then left Gira's body, which was sparking and smoldering. "But hey, when you die, at least you'll know that your bodies will make nice flesh puppets."

"First, gross. Second, just two words. Last Aria!" Ruby shouted, all four taking to the sky. And as they did, the snow fell violently, the blizzard coming full blast as the dark clouds parted for the moon to shine on them, their resilient light bringing to Remnant the first light of the year. They then all flew down to Iserlan, Blake striking first, then Weiss, then Yang, then Ruby, and they circled around him, each time their blades hitting him. And each hit made him weaker.

"No! Stop! You can't do this! I'm supposed to be a god! You are mortal! STOP THIS AT ONCE!" Iserlan roared.

"Gira was what made you strong. Now you are vulnerable. Team RWBY, final strike!" Ruby shouted, and they all flew straight into him, their swords piercing his heart.

"Gr... Ga... No... I... My... Reign... It can't end like this..." Iserlan gasped, and his form faded, as did the clouds and darkness, and Beacon's Shadow vanished, and the true Beacon began to reform, turning back into the shining spire that it once was. And everyone cheered for their victory.

"We... We did it." Yang said.

"We did it! Team RWBY saved the world!" Ruby cheered.

"We knew you could do it." Toriel said.

"Well done, team RWBY." Asgore said.

But their happiness was short lived as a pillar of fire ran through. And above, Cinder crashed down, disarming Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang.

"It's cute that you thought your victory could be won so easily. Now, die." Cinder said, firing an arrow straight for Ruby's head, but it's mark was missed. Because of Eric. He took the blow into his arm.

"Eric!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Gh! Heh, a hero shouldn't die so soon after a victory." Eric grunted.

"Ugh, you again. Fine, you will die first." Cinder grunted.

[two days earlier, the Underground]

After the monsters had gone, the Core shook violently, and it soon erupted and exploded, a single form standing in its wake. Gaster.

[present time]

Behind Cinder Gaster flew, and with his power he created a vortex that ruptured time and space. And Eric took his chance and charged Cinder, but he drew no weapon. He instead knocked her weapon from her hands and grabbed her arms.

"Gah! What- What are you doing?! Release me!" Cinder yelled.

"No can do! Ruby, I'm sorry." Eric said.

"Eric, what are you-" Ruby asked, and then it struck her like a punch to the chest. She remembered the prophecy. 'But when all is done and the fallen king last, two must return all to the past.' "No... No, you can't!"

"You know the prophecy. So far, it has told the truth! And now... I will sacrifice myself. Cinder, I'm taking you to the past!" Eric grunted.

"No! Unhand me! Release me!" Cinder struggled, but Eric held tight with his enhancements.

"Eric, if you go, I go with you!" Kieta exclaimed, grabbing Cinder's left arm as Eric took the right.

"It does say two must sacrifice. Alright." Eric said.

"No! You can't!" Cinder yelled.

"Shut up! We're almost there!" Eric yelled. "Ruby! Restore peace to the world! Make sure this disaster never repeats! Make sure no one has to make the same sacrifice! I was lucky to have known you all. And all of you, same goes for you! Make sure humanity is safe from disaster! And not just humans! Monsters, Faunus, everyone! Make sure they all have a future! A future worth living! That is my final wish. Now then, sorry to make you wait, Cinder." Eric and Kieta then went into the vortex with Cinder, the portal instantly closing as Gaster stood in its place.

"Gaster. Long time no see." Sans said. Gaster replied with a slur of symbols. "I see. That's how you managed all that power."

"You can understand him?" Kerási asked.

"Yeah, and he can understand you too." Sans said, Gaster nodding.

"But why does he speak, like, a completely different language?" Vasha asked.

"Because that's, like, his thing." Sans said, high fiving Gaster.

"And now I bet all is done." They all heard. They then turned to see Masuta.

"Masuta Senshi. You survived." Ruby said.

"Ruby, I should tell you something. Masuta isn't my real name. And I am sorry for keeping this a secret from you. I had to protect the time lines." Masuta said.

"What are you talking about?" Ruby asked.

"I should expect this disguise to have worked so well, but not this well. Now it is time to tell the truth." Masuta said, and he then showed his arm, which was torn, but the torn skin showed metal.

"Eric?" Ruby said, Masuta nodding.

"Time does take a toll on us." Eric said. "Oh, and do you remember that maid?" Eric then showed the maid from back at Forunichi that they first met, and she was now in a synthetic form.

"Kieta! But, wait, why did you keep your identity from us? And how did you get the Aster Sword?" Ruby asked.

"I suppose I should explain quite a bit." Eric laughed. "Well, after we went through the vortex, we fought Cinder. And wouldn't you know it, good old Ozpin came to help. We didn't notice him back then since he was much younger. You know, no white hair and all. And so we traveled Remnant, helping wherever we could as we should as our role of hunters. And I went to Atlas to the temple to write the Prophecy of the Dark World. After that, I settled down in Forunichi, and after fifty years, you came. As for the Aster Sword, I found it on the front porch. Literally. It crashed down right on my porch. Had to rebuild it and everything. And then I knew where I was, and I kept it hidden from sight. Until you came. And I pieced together the puzzle that had been messed up for so long. Now... I'm just glad I ended up in the right time line."

"Eric... oh, I'm so glad you're alive!" Ruby said, hugging Eric, tears of joy filling her eyes and running down her cheeks. And then, they remembered about Gira, who started to become conscious.

"I assume the plan has failed. Then go ahead. Kill me and finish what I started." Gira said, his voice ragged. And many raised their guns to kill him, but Ruby intervened.

"Gira. You tricked us from the start. You manipulated us, tricked us, and deceived us. And in the end, you still chose the path that Iserlan laid out for you. No one here could ever forgive you, and you should be put to death, melted, and turned into a doorknob. But you know what..." Ruby said, and she did what no one could ever believe. She hugged him. "I forgive you."

"W-what? You... You actually forgive me?" Gira said.

"Yes. I believe that anyone can be a good person if they really try. And I know somewhere in that robotic body, there's a good person." Ruby said.

"I... I can't tell if you're kidding." Gira said.

"I'm sincere. I fight Grimm, and today I fought demons, but never in my life do I see myself killing a person." Ruby said.

"But I'm no person. I'm a series of circuits and wires and AIs. I'm a machine with a conscious, no person." Gira said.

"Penny was the same, but she was just as human as anyone else here. And I believe you can be the same." Ruby said.

"I... I... I accept your kindness. Please... Let me redeem myself. And should I ever harm another human in evil intentions, slay me where I stand." Gira said. And inside him, his humanity sparked to life. And also some wires. He was very badly damaged.

"I still think we should kill him." Undyne grunted.

"Now, Undyne. My daughter is forgiving a very evil man. At least let her finish." Summer said.

"It's still weird to think that I'm actually talking to her dead mother. Uh, no offense." Undyne said.

"None taken. But my how she has grown." Summer laughed.

"Well, she's your daughter. And you two have been separated for so long. I have to return the Elysian army to the Elysium Reflection, but I will give you... two hours to talk to her. The gates are starting to close, so don't take too long. And Undyne... you can join her if you wish." Zealous said.

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir." Undyne said.

"You did help in this battle. It's only right if I grant you this. Ah, but I feel this is too little." Zealous said.

"It's more than enough, sir." Undyne said.

"Summer, Undyne, I expect to see you in two hours." Zealous said.

"Yes, sir." Summer and Undyne said. The two then came to the others. And Ruby, upon seeing Summer, came into her arms, as did Yang.

"Mom! I thought I'd never see you again!" Ruby exclaimed.

"And I feared the same, my child. And what a fine huntress you have grown up into. Freeing the Underground of the monster race? Haha, I never gave up hope on you. I knew you could always do it, from the moment you went into Mount Ebott, I always cheered for you. Every step you took, I watched you. I guess you could say I read your entire story. The story of the Rose of the Underground. Heh, maybe that can be your autobiography." Summer said.

"Mom, you are so silly." Ruby laughed.

"And all of you. Thank you so much for looking after my daughter. Especially you, Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna." Summer said.

"Not like we had much choice." Weiss said, Blake punching her arm.

"Be respectful." Blake said, Summer laughing.

"It's quite alright. Though, I'm sorry to say that I am not going to be around for long. Rules are rules, and I've got a big role to play in Elysium. Undyne will also return with me." Summer said.

"You mean... You won't be around for long?" Ruby said, her happiness quickly turning to sorrow.

"It's alright, dear. I'll still watch over you, until the end of time." Summer said. And for the next two hours, they talked, laughed, and cried. Not all at once, of course. Most of the crying being after the two hours, when Summer and Undyne had to leave. "Be safe, my little Rose." Summer said as she returned to Elysium.

"Well, now we just have one more thing to do." Blake said.

"Yeah. We have to put the swords back into the mountains." Ruby said. Gaster then said a few symbols. "What did he say Sans?"

"He said he can give you four a bit of a shortcut to all the mountains." Sans said, and Gaster then created a ring of purple energy with symbols in it around them, and they vanished into the mountains. In Mistral, Yang restored the Stratoblade. In Atlas, Weiss placed into North Peak the Grimm Rapier. In Vacuo, Blake inserted Excalibur into the mountain. And Ruby stood atop Mt. Ebott with the Aster Sword in hand, but she reflected on her entire journey.

"My journey started right here. In this mountain when I first fell down." Ruby said, and she visualized all that happened two years ago. Meeting Flowey, following Toriel and enjoying her motherly presence, exiting the Ruins, finding Sans and Papyrus, battling against Undyne, nerding out with Alphys, dancing with Mettaton, and battling Asriel. All of it happened in the span of one week. And now, two years later, she stood atop the same mountain she defeated, ready to defeat the greatest evil of the universe. "And now, I'm ready to end it here." Ruby then lifted the Aster Sword and plunged it back into the mountain, and the moonlight stored in it shot out and went back to the moon, and once the beam had vanished, the moon had reformed, and not in its normal shattered form. It was whole and complete. And even from the top of the mountain, Ruby could hear the people of Vale cheering, and the night sky grew brighter as the stars came back to light as the darkness vanished.

And the years that followed were of peace. The White Fang was disbanded, and Faunus, monsters, and humans lived in perfect harmony.

And as Beacon rose again, Asgore became the next headmaster, and Glynda giving up her position for Toriel, and as the years passed by, team RWBY, JNPR, and PAUS became a great band of huntsmen, and they all traveled together, fought together, saved people together, and soon became to be known as the Lights of Beacon. And for Ruby, she was forever known as the Rose of the Underground. But as the years went on, Ruby kept on wondering what still remained. She wondered if she chose another path, a new outcome would prevail. And many years later, she finally saw the first living soul that she met in the Underground.

"I guess you really didn't need me. I guess in reality, I made your life much worse. Look, when I told you you could reset... I lied. When I turned into... that monster... I shattered your link to the timelines. And now, well, unless you want me to be back in control of the timelines, which I seriously doubt you would, you can never go back." Flowey said.

"And why would I want to do that? I figure that every scenario will always come out the same, with this chaos and disaster. And honestly, I wouldn't replace it for the world." Ruby said.

And for the first time in his life, Flowey's emotions sparked to life, and he felt happy. "I'm glad to know that you care for this world, Ruby. Well, I guess have fun with the rest of your life. And, uh... when you get to Elysium, tell Asriel that Chara says hi." Flowey then returned to the ground, and Ruby laid back on the stump she sat on, and closed her eyes to the midnight sky.

A/N

Wow, what a ways we have come. It feels like yesterday that I felt nervous about posting this story online. But now, we've come to the end. All stories have to end somewhere, and this one has now drawn to a close. First off, Happy New Year, should be said. Next, I should say I'm sorry for those that hoped to see more of this, but I just have too many stories to write, I can't focus on all this. It's not that I'm lazy, I love this story a bunch, and I'll admit, it was fun writing it, but I felt like I just kept dragging it on, and I felt that this was the best way to end it. I hope you enjoyed, and if you did, leave a review of your thoughts, and I now conclude Rose of the Under-

"Hey, Erecles, aren't you forgetting something?" Asriel asked.

"Huh? I'm sure I got everything." Erecles said.

"Ugh, you forgot about the special thanks! What about those special contributors that made this story better?" Asriel sighed.

"Oh, right. Slipped my mind. Right, as Asriel said, we've got a few people to thank here. Thank you, 007foamy, Alpha701, Altair the black dragon, An Old Crow, AnimeVulpaGirl, Asriel Dremurr, AsuraShirayuki, Baconator12, Bassmallet, Blue writer 22, Boom-Ducks15, Brain Tonic, CRAZwarrior12, CapitalClassShip, Captain Cranch, CrazedGammaMan1721, Cross177, DalekEmperorUltron, Darkrai017, DeathOnWings1203, Doctor Corvus, DragonOfLord, DragonicSonic, Elemental Berserker, Enderarmy12, Epyon111, Hazel Varquese, Hellion Prime, InanisUmbra, InuCLK, Itharax, JaneMocha, JustAnotherDeathclaw, Kido77, Kirbychu2, Lady the Rainicorn, Lia the kitten, MarieMCB, Master Yami, MechaSniper51, MickeyLOLgirl, Mingyu, Mouth Of Sauron serv of sauron, MrGamesaregreat, , MultiHydralisk, NCam42, NRMania, Neo-Devil, NeroReborn, Nurayumi, One punch potato, Passionate-Eyes, Pegistar5, Phoenix Champion, Pokekylepark, Professor Writer, PurpleJuicylemon, RMVHXtreme, Razaraga, RockLobster8994, Rwbyfan54, Ryuzaki 007, S.R.457, ScarletRave, SeanArtOnline, SpiritualLoneWolf XIII, Tanzanite-Pony, TehBdog, Tf2Scout, TheDrunkleQrow, TheEnderLugia, The Kishin Sesshomaru-Kurai, Thepetrafying12, Transfanforlife, TypicalHarshReview, Villain84, Violet-the-Hero, Wilson the Mudkip, Wind Typhoon, Xeno54, Xie Rise, Zargon564, andrewlou4, askasknot, bLuewErewOlf25, blueanchor92, booklover41, bowties2017, buterflypuss, deaththewolf32, dennis5596, digitalwill, djpvce16, dovah1172, dwskulldemonmen, exdude122, fireheart126, galaxyzero, gnugpl69, gr33444, grimlock987, gundamfreedom007, keys of fate, mismurder91, mtaisho97, nemikconi new sora, nicopop, pinkkikabae, pococo, pokemonsuperallstarfan, ravenclawoutcast13, raw666, reydemon666, sharpstrike, silentstrixe, stealthgeneral, .39, thatguytotheleft, thundercharger123, tomanonuniverse, vayne hellsing, wheelbobby, whiteoak019, xForeverGamerx, and Toby Fox, along with all of the lovely people that made Undertale, and Rooster Teeth for bringing RWBY to being. I could never have done this without all of you. I didn't miss anyone, did I?" Erecles asked.

"That should be about it." Asriel nodded.

"Alright. If you actually read through all those names, I applaud you. Anyway, with that done, I now officially finish Rose of the Underground!"

P.S., I literally had to type out every name, and it took me half an hour. See what I do for you guys?


	44. Chapter 44: Far From Over (True Ending)

Bonus Chapter

Far From Over

"What?! What do you mean they're gone?!" Asgore exclaimed ferociously, slamming his fist into the table.

"Er… perhaps you must go into more detail." Toriel chuckled nervously.

"It's as I said, there have been several reports of missing teams. We simply believe the Grimm are regaining some strength, but… well, there are some tests we ran. The results were… disturbing, to say the least." The officer said with his voice wavering as a holographic screen showed a chart with stats beyond even the barrier at Mt. Ebott.

"What… what is this?" Asgore choked on his words.

"Temporal disruptions and spacial tearing. Simply put, those teams are not in this world anymore." The officer explained.

"That's impossible! The only way would be if Gaster allowed it, and we haven't seen him since the Demon War!" Toriel exclaimed suddenly.

"It's true that Gaster has been missing, and perhaps this is a prank from him. However, we have data on the residual energy from that temporal distortion, and this is far beyond that." The officer stated, showing another graph next to the primary one. The stats were obviously leagues apart.

"This… is insane. What do we do?" Asgore ran his paw through his fur.

"What we do…" The elevator door opened up to reveal a young lad, "is not panic. Whoever this causer of this distortion is will reveal himself in due time. They always do. A villain can't help but come into the spotlight."

Asgore stood. "Who are you, boy?"

"And after that, I would very much like to have my cane back." The boy said.

Asgore stumbled back. "Oz? Where have you been?! It's been ages, my friend!" Asgore laughed as he put a paw on the boy.

"Yes it has, Asgore. But in this form, you may refer to me as Oscar." Ozpin said.

"Oscar, huh? Well then, Oscar, I'm glad you showed up." Asgore smiled warmly.

Suddenly the light in Oscar's eyes faded. "Uh, yeah. Nice to meet you, sir."

"Now then, about the cane, I'm afraid Qrow had it last." Asgore said.

"And… where is he?" Oscar asked.

"Last I heard, he was at Patch, visiting his in-laws." Asgore answered.

"Patch. Right. Uh… you wouldn't happen to have the address, right?" Oscar asked awkwardly.

*later*

Oscar looked at the house, then back at the note. "This is the right address, but… well, I guess they're a humble bunch." Oscar sighed as he put the note in his pocket. He heard the laughter of children and adults inside.

He hesitated in knocking, worried he might interrupt. But he remembered what was happening.

'They all have to know. Otherwise… he'll get them too.' Ozpin said.

Then Oscar nodded, and knocked on the door. Soon, a woman wrapped in a red cloak came to the door. "Hello. Can I help you?"

"You…" Oscar said a bit dumbfounded. 'Crap. Of course I had to talk to an amazingly cute girl.' "You have silver eyes…"

The woman was clearly struck by this. "Who are you?"

"Auntie Rose, who is it?" A young boy asked.

"My name is Oscar Pine. I heard I could find Mister Qrow here?" Oscar said.

"Uh, alright." The woman said. She turned back inside. "Uncle Qrow! Someone's here to see you!"

Shortly after, a large man came to the door, who Oscar guessed to be Qrow. "What're you here for, pipsqueak?"

"Well… this is a bit awkward to ask, but… I'd like my cane back." Oscar said.

The mug in Qrow's hand fell to the ground, along with his jaw. "Qrow, you alright?"

"Uh- YES! I mean- crud! Uh, Ruby, get him some tea. Something nice. Or just- get him anything he wants. He's a guest now." Qrow stuttered with each word as he ran up the stairs.

"Why'd he get so flustered over a cane? Did he steal from you?" Ruby asked.

"Oh no. No, nothing like that. He simply borrowed it for a while for safe keeping. I'll explain later, once everyone is here." Oscar said. He then saw how young the boy was. "Uhm, and we might also have to move the kids elsewhere."

'Uh oh.' Ruby thought.

"Aunt, who is this man?" The young boy asked.

"He's our guest, Yin. Can you do me a favor and find Yang for me?" Ruby asked.

"Sure thing, aunt!" Yin said enthusiastically. He then ran off upstairs.

"So who are you?" Ruby asked.

'Crap, now I'm alone with an amazingly cute girl!' Oscar thought as he tried to get his thoughts clear. "Um… well, it might be better with Qrow here to explain."

"Why? Are you old friends or something?" Ruby asked.

"Well… in a way." Oscar nodded as he sat on the sofa. Qrow later came back with Ozpin's cane. "Ah, thank you."

"A little scratched up from the war, but it should be as good as before." Qrow nodded.

Ruby stared at the cane. "Wait… WAIT!"

"You catch on quick, kiddo. Yup, say hello to your old headmaster." Qrow smirked.

"But… you look nothing like Ozpin! He had white hair, and glasses, and not freckles! Besides, he was waaaay taller!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Glad to see the war didn't completely take away your sense of humor." Oscar chuckled with his eyes glowing rather brightly.

"Wait, is this some sort of possession situation? Is Ozpin trapped inside Oscar or something?!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Ugh, it's eight in the morning. Can you tone it down a bit sis?" Yang sighed as she came downstairs. She then stared at Oscar, then at the cane in his hand, and back at Oscar. "Uh, what did I miss?"

"Nothing at all. Please, sit down." Ozpin said. "I was actually waiting for you to join us."

Cautiously, Yang sat down. "So what's this about?"

"Tell me, where are the others? Team JNPR, PAUS, and the rest of your team?" Ozpin asked.

"Well, Jaune and Pyrrha moved in to Vale a while ago, Ren and Nora moved back to Mistral, Weiss is spending some time with family- er, what's left of it anyway. And Blake moved to Menagerie with her family as well. As for Papyrus, Sans, and Alphys… I dunno. They used to write to us in Atlas, but they just stopped a while ago." Ruby explained.

"Did they call or anything?" Ozpin asked.

"No. It just feels like they fell off the face of Remnant." Yang shrugged.

"Perhaps they did. For heroes such as them to be claimed by Distortion…" Ozpin muttered to himself.

"Uh, claimed by who?" Yang asked.

"Wait, don't tell me Distortion is back?!" Qrow exclaimed.

"Yes. From certain data and rather disturbing reports, it's safe to say Distortion is revived."

"Can you stop being vague for a second and tell us who this Distortion guy is?!" Yang exclaimed.

"Distortion is a terrifying being- perhaps even more powerful than Iserlan. He goes by many names across the multiverse. Many call him Distortion, like us, but others refer to him as Iserrule, or even Chaos. There are many other names with it. But his power- a terrifying one. He has the absolute power of temporal and spatial disruption. In short, he's a more powerful version of Gaster. You remember him, right?"

"Yeah, he sent Eric, Kieta, and Cinder back in time, right?" Ruby asked.

"Yes. So if Gaster has that power, I bet you can begin to see what kind of power Distortion has." Ozpin said.

"Oh my God." Yang said with a pit in her stomach.

"Yes. And if not dealt with quickly, he can form enough power to rip apart reality itself, and merge world that should never have intersected." Ozpin said.

"The we find him and kick his superpowered butt! Just like with Iserlan!" Ruby exclaimed.

"I'm afraid your eagerness is misplaced. To take on Distortion headon with only the four holy swords, it would be a kin to suicide." Ozpin said. He looked directly into Ruby's eyes. "Even if you mastered those eyes' powers, it wouldn't be enough. He is beyond any power or might in this world. Even my power is miniscule compared to him."

"My eyes' power? What does that mean?" Ruby asked.

"The true power of the silver eyes. They are more than a repel to evil, like you may think. If mastered, you could take on practically anything aside from the gods.: Ozpin stated.

"Ruby has that kind of power?! Why didn't you say before now?!" Yang exclaimed.

"Because the path to mastering the silver eyes is treacherous. That's how your mother died, by pursuing this power." Ozpin said.

"Mom died trying to master this?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, which is why I refrained from telling you its true power until now." Ozpin said.

"Either way, you're saying this Distortion guy won't be defeated by this power?" Yang asked.

"Yes. Even now, his power grows. And with each moment, his power spreads across our world. And the numerous disappearances of huntsmen teams is all thanks to him."

Suddenly, the TV was switched on. "This just in, the capital of Atlas has vanished!" The report was followed by an overview shot of a giant crater where Atlas used to be.

"No way…" Ruby gasped.

"Weiss…" Yang choked up.

"We have no idea of the cause of this paranormal activity, but-" suddenly, the feed cut off. No matter what channel they switched to, it was all static.

"It has begun. I apologize." Ozpin said.

"Yang, where is Yin?" Ruby asked.

"No idea. I heard his voice, but didn't hear it after I woke up." Yang answered.

"No." Ruby shot up and rushed upstairs. "YIN! YIN!" She tripped on a small pair of shoes. Yin's shoes. "No. No, no no no!" She rushed around the house, frantically searching for the missing child. And when she came downstairs, the others were gone as well. "Ozpin? Qrow?! YANG!?"

Suddenly, the TV turned back on. There was only black on the screen. No sound.

"Stop messing with me. GIVE THEM BACK!"

A silent sound emitted from the screen. It soon got louder, and it made Ruby's entire body freeze.

"Fade with me. Disappear with me. Know my pain, ye gods of unaging hell. Come with me. Vanish with me. Reality is only for those that look on the surface. Run with me. Die with me. Die. Die. Die. Die. Die." Then it kept repeating the same word, like a broken record player. Ruby fell to her knees. Tears escaped her eyes as she whimpered.

"Stop this. Please. Give them back." Ruby sobbed.

"Die. Die. Die."

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT, YOU MONSTER!?" Ruby shouted.

"Die. Die."

She felt her legs vanish. She looked at her hands. They turned to dust.

"Die."

Her cloak became blood.

"Die."

She lost vision, and she heard one last thing as the world became empty.

"Die."

To be concluded

Rose of the Underground: Escape Reality

Coming Soon


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